Hsin-Ya Liao
Associate Professor
Ph.D. University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, 2006
Email: hsinya.liao@wsu.edu
Office: JT 353
Phone: (509) 335-0680
Lab Website: Culture, Assessment, & Well-being Lab
Classes Taught
- PSYCH 403: Multicultural Psychology
- PSYCH 444: Basic Clinical Skills
- PSYCH 539: Cognitive and Neuropsychological Assessment
- PSYCH 552: Diversity Issues in Psychology
Research Interests
- Culture, Diversity, and Intergroup Relations
- Cross-Cultural Assessment
- Stigma and Help-Seeking
- Vocational Interests
My research centers on examining the role of culture and diversity on mental health service delivery and psychological well-being. My current project looks at stigma towards mental health and help-seeking, with an attempt to connect the stigma framework to indigenous cultural concepts. In a related project, I examine how status-based rejection sensitivity (i.e., sensitivity toward rejection due to their stigmatized group status) and ideological preference (e.g., malleable vs. fixed lay theory) would predict stigmatized individuals’ adjustment and well-being.
My second line of research involves examining vocational interest structures and assessments across cultures. Built on my prior work on the basic interest measures (Liao et al., 2008, also see https://labs.wsu.edu/caw/scales/), I explore the relations between vocational interests and other individual differences domains and examine the equivalence of interest structures across cultures. I also look at how well the interest congruence (aka, the person-environmental fit in interest) predicts academic performance, career success, and job satisfaction. Due to cultural variations in vocational interests, I advocate for a greater use of the indigenous interest measures than the imported ones.
Dr. Liao will be considering graduate student applications for Fall 2025 admission to the Clinical Psychology PhD Program.
Selected Publications
Vogel, D. L., Zhao, N., Vidales, C. A., Al-Darmaki, F. R., Baptista, M. N., Brenner, R. E., Ertl, M. M., Liao, H.-Y., Mak, W. W. S., Rubin, M., Schomerus, G., Şahin, E., Topkaya, N., & Wang, Y.-F. (2024). Interdependent stigma of seeking mental health services: Examining a new scale across eight countries/regions. Journal of Counseling Psychology. Advance online publication.
Buki, L. P., Liao, H.-Y., Montoya, Y., Sommer, R. K., Capielo Rosario, C., French, B. H., & McCaughey, T. (2024). Acculturation and breast cancer screening in Latina women: Unraveling reasons for mixed results over 40 years of research. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 100, 101974.
DeCino, D. A., Strear, M. M., Chronister, J., Liao, H.-Y., Chou, C.-C., & Chesnut, S. (2021). A validation study of the Multicultural Counseling Inventory for school counselors. Journal of School Counseling, 19(15), 1-32. http:/www.jsc.montana.edu/articles/v19n15.pdf
Kim, T., Hutchison, A., Gerstein, L., Liao, H.-Y., Cheung, R. W.-L., Cinamon, R. G., Michael, R., Mastroianni, E., Bellare, Y. & Collins, R. M. (2020). Hong Kong women’s perception of their future. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 48(2), 168-182.
Bai, L., & Liao, H.-Y. (2019). The relation between interest congruence and college major satisfaction: Evidence from the basic interest measures. Journal of Career Assessment, 27(4), 628-644.
Su, R., Tay, L., Liao, H.-Y., Zhang, Q., & Rounds, J. (2019). Toward a dimensional model of vocational interests. Journal of Applied Psychology, 104(5), 690-714.
Vogel, D. L., Heath, P. J., Engel K. E., Brenner, R. E., Strass, H. A., Al-Darmaki, F. R., Armstrong, P. I., Galbraith, N., Galbraith, V., Baptista, M. N., Gonçalves, M., Liao, H.-Y., Mackenzie, C., Mak, W. W. S., Rubin, M., Topkaya, N., Wang, Y.-F., & Zlati, A. (2019). Cross-cultural validation of the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Help (PSOSH) scale. Stigma and Health, 4, 82-85.
Liao, H.-Y., Spanierman, L. B., Harlow, A., & Neville, H. A. (2017). Do parents matter? Examination of White college students’ intergroup experiences and attitudes. The Counseling Psychologist, 45(2), 193-212.
Vogel, D. L., Strass, H. A., Al-Darmaki, F. R., Armstrong, P. I., Baptista, M. N., Brenner, R. E., Gonçalves, M., Heath, P. J., Lannin, D. G., Liao, H-Y., Mackenzie, C., Mak, W. W. S., Rubin, M., Topkaya, N., Wade, N. G., Wang, Y-F, & Zlati, A. (2017). Stigma associated with seeking mental health services: Examination across ten countries/regions. The Counseling Psychologist, 45(2), 170-192.
Liao, H.-Y., Hong, Y-y., & Rounds, J. (2016). Perception of subtle racism: The role of group status and legitimizing ideologies. The Counseling Psychologist, 44(2), 237-266.
Yeh, C. J., Liao, H-Y., Ma, P-W. W., Shea, M, Okubo, Y., & Kim, A. B., & Atkins, M. S. (2014). Ecological risk and protective factors of depression and anxiety among low-income Chinese immigrant youth. Asian American Journal of Psychology, 5(3), 190-199.
No, S., Hong, Y.-y., Liao, H.-Y., Lee, K., & Wood, D., & Chao, M. M. (2008). Lay theory of race affects and moderates Asian Americans’ responses toward American culture. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 991-1004.
Spanierman, L. B., Neville, H. A., Liao, H.-Y., Hammer, J. H., & Wang, Y.-F. (2008). Participation in formal and informal campus experiences: Effects on students’ racial democratic beliefs. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 1(2), 108-125.
Liao, H.-Y., Armstrong, P. I., & Rounds, J. (2008). Development and initial validation of public domain Basic Interest Markers [Monograph]. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 73, 159-183.
Hong, Y.-y., Liao, H.-Y., Wang, R. Y. M., Chan, G., Chiu, C., Ip, G. W., Fu, H., & Hansen, I. G. (2006). Temporal causal links between outgroup attitudes and social categorization: The case of Hong Kong 1997 transition. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations, 9(2), 265-288.
Liao, H.-Y., Rounds, J., & Klein, A. G. (2005). A test of Cramer’s (1999) help-seeking model and acculturation effects with Asian/Asian American college students. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52(3), 400-411.