Kaipeng Wang

Associate Professor

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kaipeng-Wang

Craig Hall, 2148 South High St. Denver, CO 80208

What I do

I conduct research to examine social determinants of health and mental health disparities among older adults to inform the development, evaluation, and implementation of culturally sensitive interventions to improve their mental health outcomes. I teach research methods, program development and evaluation, and statistical analysis, and am committed to motivating more social workers to develop and implement evidence-based services to vulnerable populations.

Specialization(s)

aging and gerontology, disparities, race and ethnicity, research methods, quantitative research methods

Professional Biography

Associate Professor Kaipeng Wang focuses on examining psychosocial factors that influence older adults' health and mental health outcomes, advance care planning, and dementia prevention. Utilizing a social determinants of health framework, his research aims to understand how elements such as discrimination, acculturation, and food insecurity contribute to health and mental health disparities among ethnic minorities and immigrants, particularly older adults. To pursue his academic inquiries, Wang primarily employs advanced quantitative methods, including multi-level modeling, longitudinal data analysis, structural equation modeling, and spatial statistics. He is the Principal Investigator (PI) or sub-award PI of several research projects funded by the National Institute on Aging, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the NextFifty Initiative. His research findings have been published in scientific journals such as Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, Journal of Aging and Health, Journal of Applied Gerontology, Psychosomatic Medicine, Journal of Affective Disorders, and Preventive Medicine. Additionally, Professor Wang serves as an Editorial Board Member for Innovation in Aging and is a commissioner of the Denver Commission on Aging.

Degree(s)

MSW, Social Work, University of South Carolina
Ph.D., Social Work, Boston College

Professional Affiliations

Other

Key Projects

Attitudes towards and Experience of Family Involvement in End-of-life Care among Older Asian Americans

Featured Publications

Wang, K., Maglalang, D. D., Woo, B., De Fries, C. M., Hasche, L. K., & Falcón, L. M. (2022). Perceived discrimination and cognitive function among older Puerto Ricans in Boston: The mediating role of depression. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 37(5). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.5717

Wang, K., Sun, F., Liu, Y., Kong, D., & De Fries, C. M. (2022). Attitude toward family involvement in end-of-life care among older Chinese Americans: How do family relationships matter? Journal of Applied Gerontology, 41(2), 380-390. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464821996865

Wang, K., Yang, J., & Averett, P. (2022). Mental health service use among middle-aged and older lesbians: Application of Andersen's health service use model. Journal of Homosexuality, 69(8), 1435-1448. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2021.1912558

Wang, K., Liu, Y., Sun, F., Kong, D., Jiang, L., & Wu, B. (2021). Advance directive completion and its associated factors among older Chinese Americans. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 22(2), 344-348.

Wang, K., Gao, X., Sun, F., De Fries, C. M., & Levkoff, S. E. (2022). Evaluation of the reliability and validity of the Alzheimer's Disease-related Quality of Life instrument among older adults with cognitive impairment in Mainland China. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 65(6), 649-663. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/01634372.2021.2010856

Cao, G., Wang, K., Han, L., Zhang, Q., Yao, S., Chen, Z., et al. (2021). Visual trajectories and risk of physical and cognitive impairment among older Chinese adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 69(10), 2877-2887. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17311

Wang, K., Gao, X., Sun, F., & Bishop, N. J. (2021). eHealth literacy and caregiver burden among Chinese caregivers of older adults with cognitive impairment: Does education matter? Journal of Applied Gerontology, 40(12), 1837-1845. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464820957151

Wang, K., Zhang, A., Sun, F., & Hu, R. X. (2021). Self-rated health among older Chinese Americans: The roles of acculturation and family cohesion. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 40(4), 387-394.

An, Q., Wang, K., Sun, F., & Zhang, A. (2020). The effectiveness of modified, group-based CBT for dementia worry among Chinese elders. Journal of Affective Disorders, 274(1), 76-84.

Wang, K., & Bishop, N. J. (2019). Social support and monetary resources as protective factors against food insecurity among older Americans: Findings from a health and retirement study. Food Security, 11(4), 929-939.

Presentations

Wang, K., Zhang, A., & Sun, F. (2020). Missing data analysis and Multiple Imputation with Chained Equations in social work research. annual conference for the Society for Social Work Research. Washing, DC.

Wang, K., Ausbrooks, A. R., & Nason, E. E. (2019). Introduction to the free package--RQDA for qualitative research. annual conference for the Society of Social Work Research. San Francisco, CA.

Wang, K., & Tran, T. V. (2017). Analyzing and presenting additive and multiplicative interaction effects between categorical variables in social work research. annual conference for the Society of Social Work Research. New Orleans, LA.

Wang, K., & Tran, T. V. (2016). Introduction to propensity score analysis using R for social work research and program evaluation. annual conference for the Society of Social Work Research. Washington, DC.

Tran, T. V., & Wang, K. (2015). Introduction to the free statistical package - R for social work research and evaluation. annual conference for the Society of Social Work Research. New Orleans, LA.