Mark Edberg

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Bio

Mark Edberg, Ph.D., M.A. Associate Professor, Department of Prevention and Community Health, with secondary appointments in the Department of Anthropology and Elliott School of International Affairs.

Dr. Edberg is currently principal investigator (PI) and director of the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health (Avance Center), an exploratory research center on health disparities with recent funding from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIH), and current funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- addressing the co-occurrence of substance abuse, youth violence, and sexual risk, and engaging in obesity prevention.. He is also founder and director of the Center on Social Well-Being and Development (CSWD), under which there is currently a working relationship with UNICEF, and current/recent projects in Ghana, Indonesia, South Africa, Jamaica, Belize, and a U.S. immigrant community.

A cultural anthropologist with a focus on public health (domestic and global), Professor Edberg is particularly knowledgeable about how poverty and marginalization intersect with key health issues, such as HIV/AIDS, substance use and youth violence. A researcher and consultant with strong interests in theory and in developing and evaluating prevention programs, Dr. Edberg says, "It has been my goal to contribute whatever I can to bridging the gap between the public health approach to these challenges and the ways in which affected populations understand and frame their relationship to a specific issue." He has done field or project work in urban North America, Mexico, Panama, Central America, Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean, South Africa, Ethiopia, Ghana and other countries. He retains a strong interest in immigrant and refugee populations, collaborating closely with organizations and residents in the Hispanic/Latino and Southeast Asian communities.

Professor Edberg is trained in qualitative research methods as well as mixed methods approaches, and has experience in program design, implementation and evaluation, community participatory research methods, social marketing, mass media and public information, all essential tools to avoid the cultural roadblocks that sometimes impede effective public health efforts. As well, he is a working musician and founder of The Furies, a modern rock band that plays original music in the DC area (www.furiesmusic.com), and its recent offshoot, the Black Shag Sherpas (www.blackshagsherpas.com).

Expertise

Expertise:

Behavioral Health

HIV/AIDS

Social Determinants of Health

Community Health

Prevention

Underserved Populations

Global Health

Population Health

Education:

Master of Arts (Political Science/International Relations), UCLA, 1982

Master of Arts (Applied Anthropology), American University, 1989

Doctor of Philosophy (Cultural Anthropology), University of Virginia, 2000

Teaching:

PubH 8408: Doctoral Seminar on Social/Behavioral Theory, Department of Prevention and Community Health

PubH 2112: Principles of Health Education and Health Promotion, Department of Prevention and Community Health

PubH 2113: Impact of Culture upon Health, Department of Prevention and Community Health

PubH 6530: Qualitative Methods in Health Promotion, Department of Prevention and Community Health (and Department of Anthropology)

PubH 6515: High Risk and Special Populations, Department of Prevention and Community Health

Community Service:

Professor Edberg participates in the department's Community Advisory Board, and has provided training (qualitative research methods, cultural competency) for the DC Health Department, as well as participating on the DC Health Disparities Committee. Previously, he received a Maryland Governor's Salute to Excellence award for helping to organize music benefits to support local violence prevention programs.

As director of the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigration/Refugee Health (NIH and CDC funded), Dr. Edberg is also a member of the Transforming Neighborhoods Initiative (TNI), a Prince George's County, MD coalition in the largely immigrant community fo Langley Park

2010 - 2012: Lead Consultant, UNICEF Situation Analysis of Children and Families, for UNICEF Belize/Central America. Developed ecological, theoretical model around which the situation analysis was prepared, collected information/data from multiple agencies and NGOs (in Belize), managed two regional consultants, wrote the report. Situation Analysis released to national meeting in San Ignacio, Belize, August, 2011.
2008 - current: Consultancy to UNICEF Latin America-Caribbean (TACRO) to develop background theoretical justification and proposed set of region-wide, ecological indicators for assessing youth/adolescent well-being. Background report submitted June 2008; proposed indicators presented in Panama City Regional HQ October 2008; draft final indicators with justification submitted December 2008; indicators and framework finalized February 2009; presented to UNICEF World Headquarters September 2009; finalization of framework and indicators for MICS4 and beyond at UNICEF headquarters October 2009. Presented framework in August 2010 at 5th World Youth Congress, Istanbul Turkey, and in September at UNICEF Regional Focal Points meeting, Mexico City.

Institutes and Centers:

Dr. Edberg is Director of the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health, at www.avancegw.org. The Center is funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (at NIH),with additional projects funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is a university-community partnership, addressing the co-occurrence of substance abuse, sex risk and interpersonal violence among youth, and the risks for cardiometabolic disease due to poor nutrition.

Dr. Edberg also founded and directs the global-oriented Center for Social Well-Being and Development (CSWD), at www.cswd-gw.org. CSWD has current and recent projects for UNICEF in the Latin America-Caribbean regional office, as well as in Belize, Jamaica, South Africa, and Indonesia.

Research

Research:

Dr. Edberg is currently principal investigator (PI) and director of a new Exploratory Research Center on Latino Immigrant/Refugee Health Disparities, funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (at NIH), focusing on the co-occurring disparities of substance abuse, youth violence, and sexual risk. He is also director of a recently chartered SPHHS center called the Center on Social Well-Being in the Latin America-Caribbean Region, under which there is currently a working relationship between UNICEF-Belize and GWU for work in support of children, youth and family initiatives in that country. He also currently serves as PI on an effort (with a consulting organization, DSG, Inc.) to develop a theoretical framework and program/evaluation model for all populations served by the Administration for Children, Youth and Families (within DHHS). Recently, he was PI on a CDC grant to address, through a pilot intervention, community factors related to youth violence in the Washington-area Latino community, Co-PI on a related CDC grant examining gender violence in the same community, Co-PI for a CDC effort to understand connections between macroeconomic factors and youth violence, Co-PI on an evaluation of a project intended to prevent trafficking/sexual exploitation, and recently a community assessment evaluator on an HIV/AIDS and TB-related effort. Previously, he served as Co-PI on a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) grant that examined substance use and HIV/AIDS risk among Southeast Asian populations; he was also involved in a related study focusing on domestic violence in the same communities. Before that, Dr. Edberg was Co-PI on other NIDA-funded research assessing HIV/AIDS and substance use among drug users, runaway youth and other high-risk populations. Dr. Edberg also directed an effort to develop an evaluation system for all grant programs funded by the U.S. Office of Minority Health (DHHS), and to implement that system, followed by a project with the same agency to develop a strategic framework for elimination of racial/ethnic health disparities. In addition, he provided, and continues to provide, evaluation consultation for UNICEF Latin America-Caribbean region. Specifically, the more recent of these projects are:

2012-2017: Principal Investigator/Center Director, P20 Exploratory Research Center on Latino Immigrant/Refugee Health Disparities, funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIH).
2012-2014: Director, SPHHS Center on Social Well-Being in the Latin America-Caribbean Region - includes funding related to Centre of Knowledge relationship with UNICEF-Belize.
2011-2013: Principal Investigator (under contract to Development Services Group, Inc.), Development of a Protective Factors Theoretical Model and Research Agenda for the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (DHHS).
2008-2011: Co-Principal Investigator (McDonnell, PI), Etiological Research on Gender Violence in the Latino Community. Collaboration with the Latino Federation of Greater Washington. Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
2005-2010: Principal Investigator, SAFER Latinos, a violence prevention intervention targeting community-level (and transnational) factors related to Latino immigrant youth violence .Collaboration with the Latino Federation of Greater Washington and Latin American Youth Center. Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
2008-2010: Co-Principal Investigator, National Expert Panel Review of Macroeconomic Factors and Youth Violence (to identify specific connections, propose research and intervention agenda). Funded by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Under contract agreement to Development Services Group, Inc.
2005-2009: Co-Principal Investigator, Evaluation Study of the SAGE Early Intervention Prostitution and Sexual Exploitation Prevention Program, for the National Institute of Justice. (Under contract to Development Services Group, Inc.)
2005-2006: Subcontract Principal Investigator, Community Assessment of Youth At-Risk for HIV/AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), Hepatitis, and Substance Abuse. Qualitative and quantitative study under subcontract to the Latin American Youth Center (Washington, DC), funded by SAMHSA/CSAP

Publications

Publications:

Essentials of Health Behavior.
Edberg M. Essentials of Health Behavior. In: Essentials of Public Health Series. Boston (MA): Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Forthcoming.

Risk behavior theory and its discontents: a generative approach to understanding violence, HIV/AIDS, substance abuse and other risk behavior.
Edberg M. Risk behavior theory and its discontents: a generative approach to understanding violence, HIV/AIDS, substance abuse and other risk behavior. Med Anthropol Q. Forthcoming.

Youth Violence and Economic Conditions
Rosenfeld R, and Edberg M (Eds). Forthcoming, Fall 2012. Youth Violence and Economic Conditions. New York: New York University Press.

Culture, Health and Diversity: Understanding People, Reducing Disparities
Edberg M. 2012. Culture, Health and Diversity: Understanding People, Reducing Disparities. Boston, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Narratives of a Cultural Persona and Power on the Border
Edberg M. September 2011. ?Narratives of a Cultural Persona and Power on the Border.? In Transnational Encounters: Music and Performance at the U.S.-Mexico Border, AL Madrid (Ed). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Using a Qualitative Approach to Develop an Evaluation Data Set for Community-Based Health Promotion Programs Addressing Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities
Edberg M, Corey K. Cohen M. 2011. ?Using a Qualitative Approach to Develop an Evaluation Data Set for Community-Based Health Promotion Programs Addressing Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities.? Health Promotion Practice June 15, doi: 10.1177/1524839910362035 (on line version).

Situation Analysis of Children and Women in Belize, 2010: An Ecological Overview
Edberg M, Chambers C, and Shaw D. May 2011. Situation Analysis of Children and Women in Belize, 2010: An Ecological Overview. (215 page report). Government of Belize/UNICEF Belize.

Narcocorridos: Narratives of a Cultural Persona and Power on the Border.
Edberg M. September 2011. ?Narcocorridos: Narratives of a Cultural Persona and Power on the Border.? In Transnational Encounters: Music and Performance at the U.S.-Mexico Border, AL Madrid (Ed). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Situation Analysis of Children and Women in Belize, 2011: An Ecological Overview.
Edberg M, Chambers C, and Shaw D. August 2011. Situation Analysis of Children and Women in Belize, 2011: An Ecological Overview. (215 page report). Government of Belize/UNICEF Belize.

Using a Qualitative Approach to Develop an Evaluation Data Set for Community-Based Health Promotion Programs Addressing Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities
Edberg M, Corey K. Cohen M. 2011. ?Using a Qualitative Approach to Develop an Evaluation Data Set for Community-Based Health Promotion Programs Addressing Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities.? Health Promotion Practice June 15, doi: 10.1177/1524839910362035 (on line version).

A Trajectory Model for Understanding and Assessing Health Disparities in Immigrant/Refugee Communities
Edberg M, Cleary S, and Vyas A. February 2010. ?A Trajectory Model for Understanding and Assessing Health Disparities in Immigrant/Refugee Communities.? Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health DOI 10.1007/s10903-010-9337-5 (on line).

The SAFER Latinos Project: Addressing a Community Ecology Underlying Latino Youth Violence
Edberg M, Cleary S, Klevens J, Collins E, Leiva R, Bazurto M, Rivera I, Taylor A, Montero L, Calderon M. 2010. ?The SAFER Latinos Project: Addressing a Community Ecology Underlying Latino Youth Violence.? Journal of Primary Prevention 31: 247-257.

Patterns of HIV/AIDS, STI, Substance Abuse and Hepatitis Risk Among Selected Samples of Latino and African-American Youth in Washington, DC.
Edberg M, Collins E, Harris M, McLendon H, and Santucci P. 2009. ?Patterns of HIV/AIDS, STI, Substance Abuse and Hepatitis Risk Among Selected Samples of Latino and African-American Youth in Washington, DC.? Journal of Youth Studies 12(6): 685-709.

El narcotraficante: narcocorridos and the construction of a cultural persona on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Edberg M. El narcotraficante: narcocorridos and the construction of a cultural persona on the U.S.-Mexico border. Austin (TX): University of Texas Press; 2004.

The narcotrafficker in representation and practice: a cultural persona from the Mexican border.
Edberg M. The narcotrafficker in representation and practice: a cultural persona from the Mexican border. Ethos 2004;32(2):257-77.

Conducting substance abuse prevention research in a workplace setting: issues and barriers.
Edberg M, Bekelman A, Cohen M, Galvin D. Conducting substance abuse prevention research in a workplace setting: issues and barriers. Report. Rockville (MD): Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), Department of Health and Human Services (US); 2003 May.

Elimination of health disparities in racial/ethnic minority communities: developing data indicators to assess the progress of community-based efforts.
Edberg M, Wong F, Woo V, Doong T. Elimination of health disparities in racial/ethnic minority communities: developing data indicators to assess the progress of community-based efforts. Evaluation and Program Planning 2003;26:11-19.

Identifying a uniform data set of information/data to assess the impacts of activities funded by the Office of Minority Health.
Edberg M, Cohen M, Bekelman A. Identifying a uniform data set of information/data to assess the impacts of activities funded by the Office of Minority Health. Final Report. Rockville (MD): Division of Policy and Data, Office of Minority Health, Department of Health and Human Services (US); 2002 Mar.

Drug traffickers as social bandits: culture and drug trafficking in northern Mexico and the border region.
Edberg M. Drug traffickers as social bandits: culture and drug trafficking in northern Mexico and the border region. Journal of Contemporary Criminology 2001;17(3):259-77.

Preliminary qualitative results from an ongoing study of HIV risk in three southeast Asian communities.
Edberg M, Wong F, Park R, Corey K. Preliminary qualitative results from an ongoing study of HIV risk in three southeast Asian communities. Proceedings of the XIV International AIDS Conference; 200 Jul 7-12; Barcelona, Spain. Sponsored by the World Health Organization, UNAIDS, Centers for Disease Control and others.

Web 2019 Update - CSS

Mark

Edberg, PhD, MA

Professor

Mark Edberg

Tabs