BRANCH Lab | Body image, Resilience, Adjustment, Nutrition, Culture, and Health
University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
BRANCH Lab
A research group focused on culture, stress, and health across development.
Welcome

Understanding body image, eating behavior, and health across cultural and developmental contexts.

The BRANCH Lab (Body image, Resilience, Adjustment, Nutrition, Culture, and Health) focuses on how culture and stress shape body image, eating behavior, and nutrition-related health, particularly among individuals navigating culturally related stressful events such as cultural transitions. The work centers on identifying specific mechanisms, including acculturative stress, stigma, and family dynamics, that contribute to variation in body image, eating patterns, and mental health outcomes across populations. The lab also studies nutritional behaviors in populations undergoing transition, with a focus on how changes in environment, culture, and resources shape diet, body image, and health over time.

This work advances theory by addressing limitations in existing models of body image and eating behavior. A central aim is to identify patterns that generalize across populations while also capturing culturally specific processes that shape health in different contexts, particularly among groups that have been historically underrepresented in this literature. By situating body image and eating within broader cultural and structural systems, this work seeks to refine current frameworks and extend their relevance across diverse global populations. In practice, these insights support the development of more precise and culturally responsive prevention and intervention strategies.

Explore Research Join the Lab

Culture and Context

Examines how sociocultural context, identity, and environmental stress shape body image, eating, and health.

Development

Examines developmental and cultural transitions, including immigration, young adulthood, and pregnancy, where risk and resilience processes emerge.

Translation

The broader goal is to generate evidence that informs prevention and intervention efforts responsive to the needs of diverse populations.

Lab Moments

A rotating collection of photos from the BRANCH Lab and research community.

BRANCH Lab
BRANCH Lab
Research and community1
Research and community1
Research and community2
Research and community2

About

The BRANCH Lab conducts theoretically driven, culturally informed research on body image, eating behavior, and nutrition-related health across diverse populations and developmental contexts.

Director

Peiyi Wang, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Psychological Science at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) and Director of the BRANCH Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Psychological Science from the University of California, Irvine, with a concentration in Social and Health Psychology and a minor in Quantitative Methods.

Dr. Wang is Affiliated Faculty at the South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and serves as Co-Chair of the Educational Programming Committee for the Academy for Eating Disorders.

Research Program

The lab examines how cultural context, stress, and social processes shape body image, eating behavior, and nutrition-related health. Ongoing work integrates longitudinal, cross-cultural, and multi-method approaches to identify mechanisms underlying risk and resilience across populations, with particular attention to groups historically underrepresented in this literature.

Current research focuses on acculturative stress, stigma, and family processes as key drivers of variation in health outcomes. This work aims to refine existing theoretical models while advancing culturally grounded frameworks that generalize across contexts without overlooking population-specific processes.

Selected Journals

Research from the lab has been published in Body Image, International Journal of Eating Disorders, Appetite, European Eating Disorders Review, and Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, among others.

People

Peiyi Wang

Peiyi Wang, Ph.D.

Director

Assistant Professor of Psychological Science at UTRGV. Research focuses on culture, body image, eating behavior, and health across development.

Body image Eating behavior Culture and health
Emanuel Arevalo

Emanuel Arevalo

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Junior majoring in Psychology. Interested in trauma-focused behavioral therapy and gaining research experience in culturally informed health.

Psychology Trauma-focused therapy Culture of the Valley
Ximena Galvan

Ximena Galvan

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Junior majoring in Psychology with a minor in Political Science. Interested in substance use and culturally informed mental health research.

Psychology Political Science Substance use
Yaren Prime

Yaren Prime

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Senior majoring in Psychology. Interested in sport psychology and how mental processes shape body image and eating behavior.

Sport psychology Body image Eating behavior

Faculty Collaborators

  • Dr. Jinbo He, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Jiangsu, China
  • Dr. Mora Reinka, Ursinus College, Pennsylvania, United States
  • Dr. Esther Chang, Soka University of America, California, United States
  • Dr. Chuansheng Chen (Ph.D. advisor), UC Irvine, California, United States

Alumni

Former students and trainees who have contributed to the lab.

Honors Students (UC Irvine)

  • Cecilia Qiu
  • Kaylia Pham, currently a Ph.D. student in Clinical Psychology, Pacific University Oregon
  • Daisy Ramos, currently a Ph.D. student in Clinical Psychology, University of New Mexico
  • Krysta Boele, currently an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist
  • Martha Carreon, currently a Project Policy Analyst II, UCLA
  • Erika Tashiro
  • Ivonne Zamora Gil

Research Assistants (UC Irvine and other universities)

  • Miyu Funahashi
  • Tram Tran
  • Truc Nguyen, San Diego Youth Services
  • Brittney Ho
  • Mirror Mi
  • Xinyi Meng
  • Shixin Huang
  • Xien Zhou
  • Isabella Jiang
  • Keyue Gao
  • Elina Chiu, currently an Associate Banker
  • Emma Kemp, currently a CQI Coordinator
  • Tina Malek, currently a Physical Therapy Assistant
  • Kassandra Romero, currently a Medical Assistant
  • Venus Dao, earned an M.A. in Elementary Education and Teaching from UC Irvine
  • Alejandra Barboza Salazar, currently a master’s student in School Psychology, Loyola Marymount University

Research Areas

Family Processes, Acculturation, and Stress

How do family processes, including communication, relational stress, intergenerational dynamics, acculturation mismatch, and stigma, shape body image, eating behaviors, and mental health?

Selected publications:

  • Wang, P., Chen, C., & Yim, I. S. (2025). The role of acculturative stress and self-construal in maladaptive eating behaviors among female young adults in diverse college settings. Appetite.
  • Wang, P., Chen, C., & Yim, I. S. (2024). Internalized weight bias and eating disorder risk: The moderating role of self-construal among culturally diverse female young adults. Stigma and Health.
  • Wang, P., Garcia, E. R., Chen, C., & Yim, I. S. (2023). Does perceived support moderate the link between acculturative stress and problematic eating behaviors? The role of family, significant other, and friend support. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 56(6), 1075–1086.
  • Wang, P., Garcia, E. R., & Yim, I. S. (2021). Acculturative stress and eating disinhibition among Asian young adults: The role of depressive symptoms and gender. Appetite, 169, 105826.
  • Ramos, D., Wang, P., Garcia, E. R., & Yim, I. S. (2025). Bicultural identity integration, depressive symptoms, and eating behavior problems among ethnic minority undergraduates. Eating Behaviors.
  • Kalantzis, M., Wang, P., Meschino, K., Raffoul, A., Nahid, R., & Braden, A. (2025). Sociocultural influences on disordered eating in Arab, Middle Eastern, and North African American women: Examining acculturative stress and social pressures. International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling, 1–16.
  • Zhang, W., Wang, P., Chen, C., Ye, B., & Shao, J. Cross-regional acculturative stress and mental well-being among undergraduate students in China. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 113, 102413.

Cross-Cultural and Global Contexts

How do body image, eating behavior, stigma, and health processes vary across cultural settings and national contexts?

Selected publications:

  • Wang, P., Xiao, Y., Cheng, Y., Sahlan, N. R., Barnhart, W. R., Nagata, J. M., & He, J. (2026). Longitudinal associations of body image flexibility with eating disorder psychopathology, eating-related psychosocial impairment, and psychological distress in Chinese cisgender men and women. European Eating Disorders Review, 1–10.
  • Liu, X., Wang, P., Barnhart, W. R., Sahlan, R. N., Cui, S., Cao, H., et al. (2026). Examining differences in positive body image across sexual orientation among Chinese male and female adults: A measurement invariance study. Body Image, 57, 102076.
  • Xiao, Y., Wang, P., Barnhart, W. R., Chen, C., Ji, F., Nagata, J. M., & He, J. (2025). Prospective relationships of emotion regulation difficulties with eating disorder psychopathology and psychosocial impairment among older adults in China. European Eating Disorders Review, 1–16.

Nutrition, Migration, and Transitional Populations

How do nutritional behaviors, stigma, and health outcomes evolve among populations undergoing major life transitions, including first-generation immigrants and international migrants?

Selected publications:

  • Wang, P., Chen, C., & Yim, I. S. (2026). A mixed-methods study of body esteem, disordered eating behaviors, acculturative stress, and sociocultural correlates among female Chinese international students. Journal of Eating Disorders.
  • Wang, P., Yim, I. S., & Lindsay, K. L. (2023). Maternal diet quality and prenatal depressive symptoms: The moderating role of economic well-being. Nutrients, 15(12), 2809.

Presentations

Selected conference presentations.

  1. Goel, N. J., Wang, P., Singh, S., Kinkel-Ram, S. S., Negi, S., Yu, K., Wong, V., Johnson-Munguia, S., & Craddock, N. (2026, June). Rethinking the "Asian" Identity in Eating Disorders Research: A Call to Action. Paper presentation, International Conference on Eating Disorders, The Hague, Netherlands.
  2. Cheng, Y., Li, Y., Barnhart, W. R., Wang, P., Sahlan, R. N., Wu, S., Jiang, Z., Nagata, J. M., Ji, F., & He, J. (2026, June). Testing the Tripartite Influence Model among Chinese Transgender and Gender-Diverse Adults. Poster, International Conference on Eating Disorders, The Hague, Netherlands.
  3. Xiao, Y., Barnhart, W. R., Wang, P., Sahlan, R. N., Huang, Z., Cui, T., Nagata, J. M., & He, J. (2026, June). The Association between Body Dissatisfaction and Life Satisfaction: A Meta-Analysis Over 30 Years. Poster, International Conference on Eating Disorders, The Hague, Netherlands.
  4. Wang, S., Wang, P., Barnhart, W. R., Sahlan, R. N., Nagata, J. M., Ji, F., & He, J. (2026, June). Adverse Childhood Experiences and Body Appreciation: The Buffering Role of Posttraumatic Growth. Poster, International Conference on Eating Disorders, The Hague, Netherlands.
  5. Funahashi, M., Yildirim, N., Wang, P., Zhang, W., & Chang, E. (2026, May). Role Reversal and Body Esteem Among Asian American Young Women: The Moderating Role of Acculturation Mismatch. Poster, Western Psychological Association, Tacoma, USA.
  6. Wang, P., Kalantzis, M. A., Fong, F., Shao, J., Zhang, Z., & Chen, C. (2026, February). Moderating Role of Feminist Identity in the Relationship Between Perceived Weight-Based Discrimination and Eating Behaviors. Flash talk, SPSP Health Pre-conference, Chicago, USA.
  7. Reinka, M., & Wang, P. (2026, February). Influencers Are Just Like Me! Similarity to Body Positive Models Reduces Self-Objectification. Poster, SPSP Health Pre-conference, Chicago, USA.
  8. Poola, N., Liu, R., Wang, P., Zhang, W., Chen, C., Martin, E., Schueller, S., & Luo, L. (2025, October). Modern Chinese Mental Health: Examining Stigma and Distress Somatization. Poster, APS Global Summit (virtual).
  9. Chan, M., Mi, R., Zhang, W., Wang, P., & Chen, C. (2025, August). Efficacy of Web-Based Mental Health Interventions in Chinese College Students. Poster, ISRII, San Diego, USA.
  10. Zhang, W., Wang, P., & Chen, C. (2025, May). Translation and Validation of the Mandarin Chinese HiTOP-SR. Poster, APS, Washington, D.C., USA.

Curriculum Vitae

The current CV can be viewed below.

Contact

The BRANCH Lab welcomes inquiries from prospective students, collaborators, and community partners interested in research on culture, stress, body image, eating, and health.

Contact Information

Email: peiyi.wang@utrgv.edu
Department: Department of Psychological Science
Institution: University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV)
Office Location: 1201 West University Dr., Education Complex 2.202I, Edinburg, TX 78539

How to Connect

Prospective undergraduate and graduate students, as well as research collaborators, are welcome to reach out by email with a brief introduction and statement of interest. The lab will be accepting M.A. students, and students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology are also welcome to email to inquire about opportunities.

  • Undergraduate applicants: include major, year, GPA, and research interests.
  • Graduate applicants: include CV, research interests, and methodological background.
  • Collaborators: include a short summary of the proposed collaboration.