Kathryn Macapagal is Promoted to Research Associate Professor
Kathryn Macapagal, Ph.D., has been promoted to Research Associate Professor at Northwestern University 
Feinberg School of Medicine effective September 1, 2020. Macapagal is the interim associate director and a faculty member at the Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing (ISGMH), as well as in the Department of Medical Social Sciences and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Feinberg School of Medicine.
A clinical health psychologist, Macapagal conducts translational research on sexual health and HIV prevention among sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth, with an emphasis on minor adolescent (13-17) and young adult (18-29) sexual minority males. Her independent and collaborative work has advanced knowledge in the field of SGM health through impactful studies on ethical issues in HIV prevention and sexual health research with SGM adolescents; SGM youth’s healthcare access, barriers, and experiences, particularly regarding HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP); and the development and implementation of novel, technology-mediated HIV prevention programs.
Macapagal joined Northwestern in 2014 and became one of ISGMH’s founding faculty members in 2015. At ISGMH, Macapagal has played research, administrative, clinical, and leadership roles essential to the institute’s growth and international recognition. She is a scientific director, key co-investigator, and lead clinician across several large National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants at the institute, including the SMART, 2GETHER , and Keep It Up! projects. As director of ISGMH’s Social Media Working Group, Macapagal has fostered interdisciplinary collaborations among scholars in communications, human-computer interaction, and learning sciences who are interested in understanding how social media functions in the lives of SGM individuals. She has played a crucial role in ISGMH’s mission to train the next generation of SGM scholars and practitioners by mentoring graduate students, psychology residents, postdoctoral fellows, and staff members.
Macapagal’s independent research, which has been funded by the NIH and the Sexualities Project at Northwestern, has focused on SGM adolescents’ use and perspectives on PrEP, experiences with sexual networking applications, and relationships with sexual health and identity development. As a Public Voices Fellow, Macapagal has shared scientific knowledge with the public through publishing op-eds in publications like Scientific American, Ms., Rewire.News, and STAT. She is currently an associate editor of the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.
Macapagal has made significant contributions to SGM youth sexual health and HIV prevention research in the following four focus areas:
Ethical Issues in SGM Adolescent Sexual Health Research
“I Won’t Out Myself Just to Do A Survey”: Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents’ Perspectives on the Risks and Benefits of Sex Research
Macapagal, Coventry, Arbeit, Fisher, and Mustanski, 2017, Archives of Sexual Behavior
Measuring Discomfort in Health Research Relative to Everyday Events and Routine Care: An Application to Sexual and Gender Minority Youth
Macapagal, Bettin, Matson, Kraus, Fisher, and Mustanski, 2019, Journal of Adolescent Health
White Paper from a CTSA Workshop Series on Special and Underserved Populations: Enhancing Investigator Readiness to Conduct Research Involving LGBT Populations
Rak, Anderson, Bostwick, Ramirez-Valles, Ruiz, Macapagal, Watson, Jeremiah, Castillo, Choure, 2018, Journal of Clinical and Translational Science
Methodological Considerations for Advancing Research on the Health and Wellbeing of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth
Schrager, Steiner, Bouris, Macapagal, Brown, 2019, LGBT Health
SGM Youth’s Experiences with Healthcare and PrEP
Differences in Healthcare Access, Use, and Experiences Within a Community Sample of Racially Diverse Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Emerging Adults
Macapagal, Bhatia, and Greene, 2016, LGBT Health
PrEP Awareness, Uptake, Barriers, and Correlates Among Adolescents Assigned Male at Birth Who Have Sex with Males in the U.S.
Macapagal, Kraus, Korpak, Jozsa, Moskowitz, 2020, Archives of Sexual Behavior
Perspectives on and Preferences for On-Demand and Long-Acting PrEP Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents Assigned Male at Birth
Macapagal, Nery-Hurwit, Matson, Crosby, and Greene, 2020, Sexuality Research and Social Policy
What If My Dad Finds Out!? Assessing Adolescent Men Who Have Sex with Men’s Perceptions About Parents as Barriers to PrEP Uptake
Moskowitz, Macapagal, Mongrella, Pérez-Cardona, Newcomb, and Mustanski, 2020, AIDS and Behavior
Research and Development of Innovative HIV Prevention for SGM Youth
Evaluating the Relationship-Oriented Information, Motivation, and Behavioral Skills Model of HIV Preventive Behaviors in Young Men Who Have Sex With Men
Macapagal, Greene, Andrews, and Mustanski, 2016, AIDS Education and Prevention
“The Best is Always Yet to Come”: Relationship Stages and Processes Among Young LGBT Couples
Macapagal, Greene, Rivera, and Mustanski, 2015, Journal of Family Psychology
Integrating HIV Prevention and Relationship Education for Young Same-Sex Male Couples: A Pilot Trial of the 2GETHER Intervention
Newcomb, Macapagal, Feinstein, Bettin, Swann, and Whitton, 2017, AIDS and Behavior
Improving Young Male Couples’ Sexual and Relationship Health in the 2GETHER Program: Intervention Techniques, Environments of Care, and Societal Considerations
Macapagal, Feinstein, Puckett, and Newcomb, 2019, Cognitive and Behavioral Practice
Surveillance Studies Involving HIV Testing are Needed: Will At-Risk Youth Participate?
Gray, Macapagal, Mustanski, and Fisher, 2019, Health Psychology
Factors Associated With HIV Testing in Teenage Men Who Have Sex with Men
Mustanski, Moskowitz, Moran, Rendina, Newcomb, and Macapagal, 2020, Pediatrics
Social Media and Technology in SGM Sexual Health and Wellbeing
Geosocial Networking App Use Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Serious Romantic Relationships
Macapagal, Coventry, Puckett, Phillips II, and Mustanski, 2016, Archives of Sexual Behavior
Hookup App Use, Sexual Behavior, and Sexual Health Among Adolescent Men who Have Sex with Men in the United States
Macapagal, Moskowitz, Li, Carrión, Bettin, Fisher, and Mustanski, 2018, Journal of Adolescent Health
The CAN-DO-IT Model: A Process for Developing and Refining Online Recruitment in HIV/AIDS and Sexual Health Research
Macapagal, Li, Clifford, Madkins, and Mustanski, 2020, Current HIV/AIDS Reports
Geosocial Networking Application Use, Characteristics of App-Met Sexual Partners, and Sexual Behavior Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents Assigned Male at Birth
Macapagal, Kraus, Moskowitz, Birnholtz, 2020, Journal of Sex Research
Relationship Education and HIV Prevention for Young Male Couples administered Online via Videoconference: Protocol of a National Randomized Controlled Trial of 2GETHER
Newcomb, Sarno, Bettin, Carey, Ciolino, Hill, Garcia, Macapagal, Mustanski, Swann, and Whitton, 2020, JMIR Research Protocols
Congratulations, Dr. Macapagal!