Ethnic and Racial Disparities in Cognitive Aging
Recorded on October 6, 2021

Jaime Perales, PhD

Maria Marquine, PhD
The content of this session focuses on cognitive aging and ethnic and racial disparities. This is a topic related to psychological practice and research beyond the application of psychological assessment and/or intervention methods that are supported by contemporary scholarship grounded in established research procedures.
- Explore the differences in cognitive aging between ethnic and racial groups in the US.
- Understand the potential mechanisms that explain disparities in cognitive aging.
- Identify the strengths and limitations of studies comparing cognitive aging outcomes between different ethnic and racial groups.
Jaime Perales Puchalt, Ph.D., MPH, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas Alzheimer’s Disease Center. His background is in psychology and public health. In addition to conducting research in Spain, England and the United States, Dr. Perales Puchalt has collaborated with teams from other countries in the European Union and the Americas. With a primary focus on reducing Latino dementia disparities, his research has led to the development of a dementia educational/recruitment tool for Latinos. He has also studied the risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment among sexual and ethnoracial minorities. Currently, he has received federal funding to develop two interventions to reduce dementia access disparities among Latino families.
Dr. Maria Marquine is Associate Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego, and Director of Disparities Research in the Division of Geriatrics, Gerontology and Palliative Care. As a bilingual (Spanish/English) clinical scientist with expertise in cross-cultural neuropsychology and disparities in neurocognitive aging, she has built a program of research focused on understanding risk for neurocognitive impairment and decline among older Latinos with and without HIV. She has also led work on the development of tools for the accurate detection of neurological dysfunction via neurocognitive tests among Latinos in the U.S., and has received foundation and philanthropic funding to pursue neuropsychological research among older persons in Latin America. She is passionate about supporting the development of early career scientists, particularly those of underrepresented backgrounds, and serves leadership roles in various NIH-funded research training programs. She is the Chair of the Science Committee of the Hispanic Neuropsychological Society, a member of the Committee on Human Research of the American Psychological Association, and a member of the Cultural Interest Group of the International Neuropsychological Society.
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