Research Bio

Emily J. Ozer is a clinical-community psychologist in public health whose research focuses on youth development, mental health, and participatory approaches to school-based interventions. Her work centers young people as co-creators of knowledge and change agents in their own communities.

Ozer is best known for her research on mental health (protective factors for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) and for advancing community-engaged and youth-led participatory action research (YPAR) as a strategy for promoting equity in educational and public health settings, and for building community-engaged partnerships with local school districts (such as SF Unified) and agencies to advance youth wellbeing. She studies how structural inequities and school environments affect adolescent well-being and how empowering youth through research can shift policies and outcomes.

An expert in adolescent health and school-based intervention science, Ozer is a professor in the School of Public Health and Director of the Institute of Human Development at the University of California, Berkeley. She is a core faculty member in the Community Health Sciences Division and a co-investigator on national initiatives promoting youth engagement in health equity research and strengthening the public impact of research.

Research Expertise and Interest

participatory research, community-engaged research / scholarship, mental health, public health, health and social behavior, clinical and community psychology, adolescent development, school-based health promotion