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Dr. Aashir NasimAashir Nasim

Associate professor, African American studies and psychology

Contact information

1000 W Franklin St, rm 103
PO Box 842509
Richmond, VA 23284-2509
(804) 828-4904
(804) 828-1665 fax
anasim@vcu.edu

Education

PhD (2001) in developmental psychology, Howard University

Biographical statement

Aashir Nasim received his PhD in Developmental Psychology from Howard University in 2001.  Dr. Nasim began his career as an Assistant Professor at James Madison University in 2001 and was tenured and promoted to Associate Professor in 2006.  He is a Health Disparities Scholar for the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD).  Dr. Nasim is also an editorial consultant for the Journal of Black Psychology.

Research interests

Dr. Nasim's research centers on the social epidemiology of substance use and abuse among African Americans.  A central research aim has been to determine how certain theoretical and methodological conceptualizations of resilience contribute to our understanding of the onset and progression of substance use behaviors from childhood to adulthood in African Americans.  Following from this aim have been two primary research objectives which are to distinguish between the promotive and protective effects of sociocultural factors on adolescent substance use; and, to better understand the functionality of protective factors in buffering risks for substance use and abuse.  At present, Dr. Nasim is funded by the Virginia Tobacco Settlement Foundation (VTSF) to examine the impact of risk factors on the progression of substance use (specifically, tobacco use) during school transitions in elementary, middle, and high school.

Representative publications

Nasim, A., Belgrave, F. Z., Corona, R., & Townsend, T. G. (In press). Predictors of alcohol and tobacco refusal efficacy among rural and urban African American adolescents. Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse.

Fernander, A. F., Schumacher, M., & Nasim, A. (2008). Sociocultural stress, smoking risk, and quitting among African American women. Journal of Black Psychology, 34(1), 49-69.

Belgrave, F. Z., Clark, T., & Nasim, A. (2008). Drug use and abuse among African American youth.  In H. Neville, B. Tynes, & S. Utsey (Eds.) Handbook of African American psychology. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Nasim, A., Belgrave, F. Z., Jagers, R., Wilson, K. D., & Owens, K. (2007). The moderating effects of culture on peer deviance and alcohol use among high-risk African American adolescents. Journal of Drug Education, 37(3), 327-355.

Nasim, A., Corona, R., Belgrave, F. Z., Utsey, S. O., & Fallah, N. (2007). Cultural orientatation as a protective factor against smoking among African American young women. Journal of Youth & Adolescence, 36(4), 503-516.

More publications [PDF]

Recent courses

Introduction to African American studies
Modes of inquiry in African American studies

Recent grants or awards

Virginia Youth Tobacco Project. Secondary data analysis of youth tobacco data. Project Role: Co-Principal Investigator (Elizabeth Turf, PI).  Funding Amount: $40,000. 2007 - 2008.
Virginia Tobacco Settlement Foundation Research Grant. Pathways to smoking among African American adolescents. Project Role: Co-Principal Investigator (Faye Z. Belgrave, PI). Funding Amount: $728,929.  2006 - 2009.
National Center on Minority Health & Health Disparities (NCMHD). National Institutes of Health Loan Repayment Program.  Two-Year Renewal Issued, September 2007.