Alfonso Mercado Author

Dr. Alfonso Mercado is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological Science and Department of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He is a Licensed Psychologist and President of the Texas Psychological Association and APA's Committee on Rural Health. In 2019, Dr. Mercado was named Psychologist of the Year by the Texas Psychological Association for his research, and clinical and advocacy work with recently immigrated families along the U.S.-Mexico border. In 2021, he received the American Psychological Association Early Career Psychologist Achievement Award. Dr. Amanda Venta is a Clinical Psychologist and Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Houston. Her primary research interests are the development of psychopathology in youth and the protective effect of attachment security, with a focus on the psychological functioning of recently immigrated adolescents from Central America. She has received research funding from the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities, the National Institutes of Mental Health, and the American Psychological Foundation. In 2016, she was designated as a Rising Star by the Association for Psychological Science, and in 2019 received the Outstanding Contribution to Science award from the Texas Psychological Association.