Directory

Biography

Dr. Lindsay Taliaferro received her Ph.D. in Health Behavior from the University of Florida in 2009. She then completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Healthy Youth Development -Prevention Research Center, Department of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Taliaferro is a Certified Health Education Specialist. The UCF College of Medicine (COM) welcomed Dr. Taliaferro as an Assistant Professor of Medicine in July of 2016. Dr. Taliaferro is a member of the Department of Population Health Sciences. Her primary role focuses on Population Health research, with an emphasis on suicide prevention and receipt of high-quality healthcare for LGBTQ+ adolescents and young adults. She conducts strengths-based, intersectional mixed-methods research with racially and ethnically diverse LGBTQ+ young people, examining effects of modifiable protective factors across individual, interpersonal, community, and societal/structural levels on mental health outcomes and healthcare utilization. In recognition of her research, she received a UCF Reach for the Stars Award, UCF Women of Distinction Award, and UCF COM Early Career Investigator Award for Achievement in Research. She also received a Sexual and Gender Minority Early Stage Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Her research has been funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, National Institute of Mental Health, and American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Lindsay Taliaferro is a member of several professional organizations, including the Youth Suicide Research Consortium, Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, International Society for the Study of Self-Injury, and American School Health Association. She is a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of School Health and a standing member on the NIH Social Psychology, Personality, and Interpersonal Processes Study Section (SPIP), Risk, Prevention, and Health Behavior Integrated Review Group (RPHB). She has presented her research at numerous national, international, and local conferences, and published scholarly articles in a variety of peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Recent Publications


Selected peer-reviewed articles and book chapters

  1. Taliaferro LA, Westers N, Matsumiya B, Ingraham K, Muehlenkamp JJ, Hughes CE. Improving capacity to identify, assess, and manage adolescents engaging in non-suicidal self-injury using patient avatars. Medical Teacher, 2023. doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2023.2216861.
  2. Reeves K, Job S, Blackwell C, Sanchez K, Carter S, Taliaferro L. Provider cultural competence and humility in healthcare interactions with transgender and nonbinary young adults. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 2023. doi:10.1111/jnu.12903.
  3. Taliaferro LA, Heerde JA, Bailey JA, Toumbourou JW, McMorris BJ. Adolescent predictors of deliberate self-harm thoughts and behavior among young adults: a longitudinal cross-national study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 2023; 73(3):61-69.
  4. Zullo L, Rogers ML, Taliaferro LA. NSSI among sexual and gender diverse youth. In Lloyd-Richardson EE, Baetens I, Whitlock J (Eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press; 2023. org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780197611272.001.0001.
  5. Baiden P, LaBrenz CA, Onyeaka HK, Muoghalu C, Nicholas JK, Spoor S, Bock E, Taliaferro LA. Perceived racial discrimination and suicidal behaviors among racial and ethnic minority adolescents in the United States: Findings from the 2021 Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey. Psychiatry Research, 2022; 317:114877.
  6. Taliaferro LA, Mishtal J, Chulani VL, Middleton TC, Acevedo M, Eisenberg ME. Perspectives on inadequate preparation and training priorities for physicians working with sexual minority youth. International Journal of Medical Education, 2021; 12:186-194.
  7. Areba EM, Taliaferro LA, Forster M, McMorris BJ, Mathiason MA, Eisenberg ME. Adverse childhood experiences and suicidality: student connectedness as a protective factor for ethnic minority adolescents. Children and Youth Services Review, 2021; 120:105637.
  8. Green AE, Taliaferro LA, Price-Feeney M. Risk and protective factors to improve well-being and prevent suicide among LGBTQ youth. In Miranda R, Jeglic E (Eds.). Handbook of Youth Suicide Prevention: Integrating Research into Practice. Switzerland, AG: Springer Nature; 2021, pp.177-194
  9. Rogers ML, Taliaferro LA. Self-injurious thoughts and behaviors among sexual and gender minority youth: a systematic review of recent research. Current Sexual Health Reports, 2020; 12:335-350.
  10. Taliaferro LA, Doty JL, Gower AL, Querna K, Rovito MJ. Profiles of risk and protection for violence and bullying perpetration among adolescent males. Journal of School Health, 2020; 90(3):212-223.
  11. Taliaferro LA, Jang ST, Westers NJ, Muehlenkamp JJ, Whitlock JL, McMorris BJ. Associations between connections to parents and friends and non-suicidal self-injury among adolescents: the mediating role of developmental assets. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 2020; 25(2): 359-371.
  12. Taliaferro LA, Muehlenkamp JJ, Jeevanba SB. Factors associated with emotional distress and suicide ideation among international college students. Journal of American College Health, 2020; 68(6):565-569.
  13. Taliaferro LA, Mishtal J, Chulani VL, Acevedo M, Middleton TC, Eisenberg ME. Communicating effectively with sexual minority youth: perspectives of young people and healthcare providers. Acta Scientific Paediatrics, 2019; 2(10):32-39.
  14. Taliaferro LA, Harder BM, Lampe NM, Carter SK, Rider GN, Eisenberg ME. Social connectedness factors that facilitate use of healthcare services: comparison of transgender/gender non-conforming and cisgender adolescents. The Journal of Pediatrics, 2019; 211:172-178.
  15. Taliaferro LA, McMorris BJ, Rider GN, Eisenberg ME. Risk and protective factors for self-harm in a population-based sample of transgender youth. Archives of Suicide Research, 2019; 23(2): 203-221.
  16. Taliaferro LA, McMorris BJ, Eisenberg ME. Connections that moderate risk of non-suicidal self-injury among transgender and gender non-conforming youth. Psychiatry Research, 2018; 268: 65-67.
  17. Taliaferro LA, Gloppen KM, Muehlenkamp JJ, Eisenberg ME. Depression and suicidality among bisexual youth: a nationally representative sample. Journal of LGBT Youth, 2018; 15(1):16-31.
  18. Taliaferro LA, Muehlenkamp JJ. Nonsuicidal self-injury and suicidality among sexual minority youth: risk factors and protective connectedness factors. Academic Pediatrics, 2017; 17(7):715-722.

Education & Specialties

Education, Training, and Research:
• B.S., Psychology, Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
• M.S., Sports Management, Florida International University, Miami, FL
• M.P.H., Public Health Education, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
• Ph.D., Health Behavior, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
• Postdoctoral Fellowship, Adolescent Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN

Specialties:
• Public Health
• Adolescent Health & Development

Research Interests:
• Suicide Prevention among Adolescents and Young Adults
• Health of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth
• Strengths-Based, Intersectional Research