PRIDE: Puerto Rican Identity Development after Experiences of Trauma

Since 2016, residents of Puerto Rico have experienced increases in gender-based violence (especially during the COVID-19 pandemic), natural disasters like Hurricane Maria and Irma, and extreme poverty. These experiences can have long-lasting effects on mental health and identity development.

The PRIDE Study (Puerto Rican Identity Development after Experiences of Trauma Interview Study) seeks to deepen our understanding of how trauma histories — rooted in cultural, familial, social, or systemic factors — shape the identity development of Puerto Rican college students.

The study also explores coping strategies and protective factors such as interpersonal support, meaning-making, and religious practices.

Forty-five students from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez will be recruited to participate in individual, semi-structured interviews.