PhD, Health Economics
Department of Health Policy and Management
U.C. Berkeley
Areas of Experience and expertise
Longitudinal Study Design, Survey Research Design, Qualitative and Mixed Methods, Psychometric Analysis, Community Engagement, Implementation Science
Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias, Cardiovascular Health, Mental Health, Health Policy
Immigrant populations, Hispanic/Latino/Latinx populations, Sexual and Gender minority, LGBTQ+ populations
Short Biography
A health economist and social demographer, Krista M. Perreira, Ph.D. is a Professor of Social Medicine as well as a faculty fellow in the Carolina Population Center. Her research focuses on the relationships among family, migration, and social policy, with an emphasis on eliminating racial, gender, and socio-economic disparities in health. Integrating economic, psychological, sociological theory, her research is highly interdisciplinary involving collaborations with scholars in public health, medicine, nursing, psychology, sociology and other disciplines. Her research also emphasizes community engagement through partnerships with community-based organizations, schools, and local and state government committees in North Carolina.
In 2003, Dr. Perreira received a national Young Scholar award from the Foundation for Child Development for her work on the health of immigrant children. In 2010, she received the Phillip and Ruth Hettleman Prize for Artistic and Scholarly Achievement by Young Faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill. In 2014, she was awarded the Edward Kidder Graham Faculty Service Award for her national and state service to promote the welfare of immigrants and their families.
Dr. Perreira is currently a Multiple Principal Investigator (MPI) for the Add Health Parent Study Phase 2, “A Biosocial Resource for the Study of Multigenerational Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease and Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementias (AD/ADRD)”, funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA).
Previously, she has conducted public health and medical research on cardiovascular health (including diet and physical activity), mental health and substance use, and health care access. She has received funding for her work on cardiovascular health from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). This includes funding for the nationwide Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), the Study of Latino Youth (SOL Youth), and the Study of Latino Stress, Gender, and Minority status (SOL SGM). With support from the Russell Sage, Spencer, and William T. Grant Foundations, she has combined qualitative and quantitative methodologies to identify how acculturation and migration processes influence the mental health and academic achievement of Latino youth in North Carolina. With funding from the Anne E. Casey Foundation, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, she has also evaluated the health of immigrant populations and their access to public health insurance and related public assistance programs. Her scholarship has been published in leading journals on demography (e.g., Demography), economics (e.g., Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, health economics), medicine and epidemiology (e.g., JAMA, NEJM, AJE), public health (e.g., American Journal of Public Health, Social Science and Medicine), psychology (e.g., Journal of Social Issues), and sociology (e.g., Social Forces).
Prior to joining the faculty of UNC School of Medicine, Dr. Perreira served as the Associate Dean of the Office for Undergraduate Research (OUR) and Professor of Public Policy in the College of Arts and Sciences at UNC Chapel Hill. She has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in policy analysis, research design, immigration policy, and health policy. In addition, she has served as a policy analyst for FHI 360, the Migration Policy Institute, the Rand Corporation, the Urban Institute, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
