
- Major Professor: Dr. Kali Trzesniewski
Yushan Zhao is a second-year Ph.D. student in the Human Development Graduate Program at UC Davis. Her research examines the sense of belonging experienced by college students from various demographic backgrounds. She focuses on the impact of this sense of belonging on students' college success, especially in terms of academic achievement. Yushan is currently analyzing the UC Davis Sense of Belonging Intervention Data Set to study the relationship between students' class attendance and their academic achievement as her initial research project in the Ph.D. program. Yushan is also interested in applying statistical methods such as structural equation modeling and latent profile analysis, to social science. Before commencing her Ph.D., Yushan volunteered with the Chinese Parents Association for the Disabled, providing services to Chinese American children with developmental disabilities.
Publications
Zhao, Y., Dennis, J. M., & Houseman, C. (2024). Predictors of hookup behaviors among Asian and Asian American college students in the United States. Journal of American College Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2024.2311121
Conference Presentations
Zhao, Y., Huddlestun, D., Hibel, J., Rose, H., Ebeler, S., & Trzesniewski, K. (2024). Students’ anxiety levels before coming to college [poster] Association for Psychological Science's 2024 Annual Convention, San Francisco, CA.
Zhao, Y. & Munger, A. (2024). Chinese American parents’ perspectives on their children with intellectual and developmental disabilities’ oral health [poster]. 18th Annual Conference for University of California's Center for Research on Special Education, Disabilities, and Developmental Risk, Sacramento, CA.