Harm Reduction Education Among Latinx College Students at a Hispanic Serving Research Institution (HSRI)

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 2:30 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Leveraging the R in HSRIs: Research for Educational Equity at a Hispanic-Serving Research Institution (Table 1)

Abstract

Objective
The purpose of this study is to examine harm reduction education at an HSRI among Latinx college students with intersectional identities. We want to know how they perceive campus resources on harm reduction education and how this relates to discrimination, psychological well-being, and sense of belonging at an HSRI.

Theoretical Framework
HSRI stems from Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) research. An HSI that has a Latinx-serving identity is an institution that has enrolled 25% Latinx students, produced positive academic outcomes, and promoted a culture that enhances Latinx experiences (Garcia, 2017). Despite the title, many HSIs have not reflected a commitment to serving Latinx students, especially with intersecting marginalized identities (Garcia & Cuellar, 2023).

Harm reduction refers to a range of humane practices and policies created by and for substance users to minimize the negative physical and psychological consequences associated with substance use (Harm Reduction International, 2022; Marlatt, 1996). Harm reduction theory has informed the risks of substance use, and most recently with adolescent substance users (e.g., Winer et al., 2022); as well as an approach to safer sex practices (e.g., Laris et al., 2021). Harm reduction is critical because of its emphasis on the humanity of the user. Hence, harm reduction-centered resources have helped to humanize people, who engage in substance use and/or sexual activity deemed as taboo in society, by providing support with empathy and compassion. Furthermore, recent research has suggested that harm-reduction education may act as a buffer between substance usage and perceptions of discrimination in Latinx college students, highlighting the importance of harm-reduction resources in higher education (López et al., 2022).


Data and Methods
The University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), an HSRI, has resources for students to receive harm-reduction education on substance use and sexual health. SHOP (Student Health Outreach and Promotion), a part of the Student Health Center, is a campus resource for all students to receive harm reduction information, education, and support on issues related to health and wellness in a confidential, non-judgmental way. This study will focus on sampling Latinx college students at UCSC with intersecting identities (e.g., first-gen, woman, nonbinary, LGBTQI+). We plan to conduct a mixed methods study through a survey that includes questionnaires and open-ended questions on their perceptions of, or experiences with, harm reduction education at a HSRI.

Results
We expect to find a relationship between access to harm reduction resources at an HSRI, psychological well-being, as well as experiences with discrimination and sense of belonging among Latinx college students. We also expect to find unique experiences with the resources based on their intersecting identities.

Significance
Findings can help key stakeholders understand how access to harm reduction education at a HSRI serves Latinx college students. HSRIs like UCSC can use the findings from the study to inform how they can collaborate with campus resources like SHOP to meet the needs of Latinx students with multiple marginalized identities.

Author

• Betsy Centeno, University of California - Santa Cruz