Meet our new faculty: Brian TaeHyuk Keum

Where did you live and work previously?

Prior to joining the faculty at UC Berkeley School of Public Health, I lived in Boston where I was the Buehler Family Sesquicentennial Endowed Assistant Professor of Counseling Psychology at Boston College. Prior to that, I lived in Los Angeles where I worked as assistant professor of social welfare at UCLA. And before that, I spent most of my time on the East Coast (New York, Maryland) for my graduate education.

What drew you to work and teach at UC Berkeley?

Foremost, UC Berkeley Public Health is an interdisciplinary hub that aligns phenomenally with my research interests, which traverse public health, psychology, digital technologies, and social justice domains. I am excited to be part of this world-class institution and to work with renowned researchers and incredible students.

I was also hired for the Asian American and Pacific Islander Transpacific Futures Cluster initiative, a research cluster at UC Berkeley focused on understanding the dynamic relationship between Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities in the U.S. and the broader transpacific world. UC Berkeley, within the Bay Area, is exceptionally positioned to lead this charge and I am excited to contribute to this given my major research programs on Asian American mental health.

What are you currently working on?

My lab and I (Digital Equity & Anti-Oppression Lab) are currently focusing on several lines of research. One major area is mitigating mental health (such as depression, loneliness, and trauma) and behavioral (such as problematic substance use and suicide risk) costs of online violence and discrimination (such as online racism, gendered racism, and heterosexism) among racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents and young adults. We’ve developed assessment tools to examine these encounters and are working toward identifying prevention and intervention strategies.

Another major area is devoted to critical intersectional exploration of mental health, socialization (gendered racism, gendered racial socialization), and flourishing (affirmative socialization) among Asian Americans. We are advancing some good work on how affirmative socialization, especially starting at an early age, can help buffer mental health and behavioral costs (e.g., suicide risk). I am currently a principal investigator on a NIMH Small Business Technology Transfer Grant, collaborating with an AI-driven, culturally sensitive digital mental health platform (Anise Health Inc.) to improve mental health services for Asian American individuals. I am also a co-principal investigator on a research grant from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, examining culturally informed risk and protective factors among suicide-bereaved Asian American families.

Some of my secondary work focuses on disparities in mental health services and clinician training. For example, we have examined the Center for Collegiate Mental Health data on counseling centers across the country to identify systemic disparities that make it harder for students with minoritized identities to access campus counseling services, and for those who have access, experience disparities in effective mental health care. I also study ways to promote cross-racial solidarity and community resilience. We’ve been developing and pilot testing a digital storytelling intervention to help emerging adults develop anti-racism values and advocacy interests.