Faculty Profiles

Aitiana Sanchez-Garciaguirre earned her PhD in Health Psychology and MA in Experimental Psychology from The University of Texas at El Paso. She also holds a BS in Psychology from Texas State University, along with a Certificate in Quantitative Methods in Psychology.

Dr. Sanchez-Garciaguirre is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Human Performance at Texas State University. Her research interests focus on resilience, mental health, and alcohol use, particularly among Hispanic college students. She is passionate about investigating the role of Minority Stress Theory in understanding how marginalized students navigate psychological stress and adversity in higher education settings. Her work aims to design and evaluate interventions, such as 'Transforming Lives Through Resilience Education,' to bolster resilience and mental well-being in this population. Dr. Sanchez-Garciaguirre’s primary population of interest is Hispanic college students, and her research seeks to examine resilience interventions for diverse populations impacted by stress, mental illness, and addiction. She is also involved in developing tailored interventions for students experiencing mental illness or distress. In addition, her secondary research interests include improving mental health outcomes, address alcohol use, and support overall well-being.
She has published in high-impact journals such as Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, Alcohol, Clinical and Experimental Research, and The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. Additionally, she has presented her work at numerous conferences, including the American Psychological Association, Research Society on Alcohol, and Collaborative Perspective on Addiction.