Paul Kwon: A group intervention for first-generation college students

Title

A group intervention for first-generation college students

Mentor

Paul Kwon, Ph.D.

Department

Psychology

Biosketch

Paul Kwon, Ph.D., joined the University of Nevada, Reno in August of 2022 as a professor and director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology. Previously, he was a professor in the Department of Psychology at Washington State University for 25 years, where he also served as an affiliate professor in the program in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Kwon's research investigates the role of resilience variables in how stigmatized individuals, particularly LGBTQ and ethnic minority individuals, cope with environmental stressors. His work examines the ways in which people can thrive and succeed despite prejudice and stigma, leading to interventions and prevention efforts to foster resilience in these populations.

Project overview

The Pack Research Experience Student (PREP) student will assist two graduate students and Kwon in developing a group intervention specifically designed for first-generation college students to increase their resilience to the challenges that they face in an academic setting. Duties will include assisting in the development of a structured, standardized manual for future co-therapists facilitating such groups. The groups are designed to assist participants in developing skills that are based on Dialectical Behavior Therapy, an empirically supported intervention in clinical psychology.

PACK RESEARCH EXPERIENCE PROGRAM INFORMATION AND APPLICATION