Stephanie Cook

Dr. Stephanie Cook

Stephanie H Cook

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Associate Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Associate Professor of Biostatistics

Professional overview

Dr. Stephanie Cook's research focuses on understanding the complex relationship between stress, health, and social determinants of health across the lifespan. Her work examines how both structural and individual-level stressors contribute to mental and physical health outcomes, particularly in vulnerable populations. Dr. Cook is particularly interested in how features of close relationships—such as attachment patterns—can either exacerbate or buffer the negative effects of stress on overall well-being.

Her current research explores how daily and momentary experiences of stress are linked to physical health markers (e.g., cortisol, C-reactive protein) and health behaviors (e.g., substance use, sexual risk behaviors). She focuses on how these stressors impact health trajectories over time, particularly among young adults navigating significant life transitions.

Dr. Cook employs advanced longitudinal study designs, including intensive longitudinal methods, to track how changes in stress exposure affect changes in risk behaviors and physical health outcomes.

As the Director of the Attachment and Health Disparities Research Lab (AHDL), Dr. Cook leads a team of undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows in exploring innovative ways to mitigate the impact of stress on health. She has developed an integrated model combining adult attachment theory and stress research to better understand how relational factors influence health outcomes for individuals facing social disadvantage. Her long-term goal is to develop and implement sustainable interventions aimed at reducing the harmful effects of stress on health, with a focus on improving health equity.

Current Projects

  • GeoSENSE: Geospatial Study on Intersectionality, Discrimination, and Cardiometabolic Health Behaviors Among Young Sexual and Gender Minorities
  • Identifying Physiological and Behavioral Mechanisms Linking Discrimination and Subclinical Cardiovascular Disease among Racially Diverse Young Sexual Minority Men
  • Minority Stress, Substance Use, and Pre-Clinical Cardiovascular Risk among Sexual Minority Men: Understanding the Protective Features of Social Support
  • Optimizing a Daily Mindfulness Intervention to Reduce Stress from Discrimination among Sexual and Gender Minorities of Color
  • Race modifies the association between post-traumatic stress disorder and cardiovascular risk in large US population-based study

Teaching

Social and Behavioral Sciences Department

  • Global Issues in Social and Behavioral Health
  • Research Methods in Public Health

Biostatistics Department

  • Longitudinal Analysis of Public Health Data
  • Regression I: Regression Analysis and Multivariate Modeling
  • Regression II: Categorical Data Analysis

Education

BA, Psychology and Women’s Studies, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
MPH, Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY
DrPH, Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY

Honors and awards

National Institutes of Health (NIH) Summer Institute Fellowship on Randomized Behavioral Clinical Trials Fellowship (2023)
New York University Faculty Fellow in Residence, New York University (2023)
New York University James Weldon Johnson Professor (2023)
NIH Loan Repayment Program Award, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (2023)
Outstanding Research Mentor, The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, The University of Michigan (2022)
New York University Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Faculty Award (2022)
Loan Repayment Program, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (2021)
BioData Catalyst Fellowship, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) (2021)
Diverse Magazine Emerging Scholar: Issues In Higher Education Publication, (2021)
Program to Increase Diversity in Cardiovascular Health Related Research (PRIDE) Fellowship (2020)
American Psychosomatic Society (APS) Diversity Award (2020)
National Institute of Minority Health Disparities Loan Repayment Award (2018)
Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research Scholarship, The University of Michigan (2018)
Robert Wood Johnson Fellow (RWJF) New Connections Sponsored Scholar (2018)
HIV and Drug Abuse Prevention Research Ethics Training Institute (RETI) Award (2017)
Robert Wood Johnson Fellow (RWJF) New Connections Sponsored Scholar (2017)
Matilda White Riley Distinguished Early Stage Investigator Award, National Institutes of Health (Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences) (2016)
Outstanding Postdoctoral Fellow Award, The University of Michigan (2015)
American Psychological Association Smoking Dissemination Award (2015)
Poster Award, Excellence in Innovation and Advanced Research in the Field of Sexual Health, American Public Health Association (2014)
Excellence in Abstract Submission, American Public Health Association (2011)

Areas of research and study

Biostatistics
Cardiovascular Disease
Intersectionality Theory
Longitudinal Methods
Minority Health
Minority Stress
Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST)
Physiological Stress
Social Behaviors

Publications

Positive Development and Changes in Self-Rated Health Among Young Sexual Minority Males: The P18 Cohort Study

THE HEALTH OF GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN

The Mediating Role of Emotion Dysregulation in the Relation Between Adult Attachment Insecurity and Depression Among Young Gay and Bisexual Men

Wood, E. P., Cook, S. H., & Calebs, B. J. (n.d.).

Publication year

2019

Journal title

International Journal of Sexual Health

Volume

31

Issue

2

Page(s)

186-195
10.1080/19317611.2019.1611689
Abstract
Abstract
Objectives: Attachment insecurity may be more pronounced among young gay and bisexual men (YGBM). Further, attachment insecurity is associated with dysregulated patterns of emotion regulation, which can lead to depression. However, pathways linking attachment insecurity to depression are underexplored among YGBM. Methods: This study used pilot data from N = 67 YGBM to examine if emotion dysregulation mediated the association between attachment insecurity and depression. Results: Results supported the study hypotheses. Attachment insecurity was associated with emotion dysregulation, which was associated with depression. Conclusion: Findings provide preliminary evidence that emotion regulation training may be a useful approach for addressing depression among YGBM.

Understanding Attachment Transitions Through the Lived Experiences of Young Black Gay and Bisexual Men

Are trajectories of a syndemic index in adolescence linked to HIV vulnerability in emerging and young adulthood?

Family conflict, chaos, and negative life events predict cortisol activity in low-income children

Friendship Attachment Style Moderates the Effect of Adolescent Exposure to Violence on Emerging Adult Depression and Anxiety Trajectories

Psychometric analysis of the life worries scale for a new generation of sexual minority men: The P18 cohort study

Relationship cognitions and longitudinal trajectories of sexual risk behavior among young gay and bisexual men: The P18 cohort study

Sexual orientation moderates the association between parental overprotection and stress biomarker profiles

Stress levels are associated with poor sleep health among sexual minority men in Paris, France

Teacher-Based Racial Discrimination: The Role of Racial Pride and Religiosity Among African American and Caribbean Black Adolescents

Butler-Barnes, S. T., Cook, S., Leath, S., & Caldwell, C. (n.d.).

Publication year

2018

Journal title

Race and Social Problems

Volume

10

Issue

1

Page(s)

30-41
10.1007/s12552-017-9222-0
Abstract
Abstract
This study explored the extent to which private regard and religiosity beliefs serve as protective factors for school bonding among African American and Caribbean black adolescents who experience racial discrimination in school. Findings are drawn from a nationally representative sample of (n = 810) African American and (n = 360) Caribbean black adolescents (52% girls) aged 13–17 (Mage = 15, SD = 1.42) years. Results suggest that perceiving racial discrimination from teachers was associated with lower levels of school bonding for African American and Caribbean black adolescents. For African American adolescents, perceiving more racial discrimination from teachers and reporting lower private regard beliefs was associated with less school bonding. The findings for Caribbean black adolescents revealed that endorsing moderate levels of religiosity and perceiving higher rates of teacher discrimination was associated with less school bonding. The developmental significance and implications for future research are discussed.

Adult attachment as a moderator of the association between childhood traumatic experiences and depression symptoms among young black gay and bisexual men

Cortisol profiles differ by race/ethnicity among young sexual minority men

Minority Males

Minority males: Cultural stressors and their impact on health and well-being

Attachment orientation and sexual risk behaviour among young Black gay and bisexual men

Profiles of Resilience and Psychosocial Outcomes among Young Black Gay and Bisexual Men

Relationship cognitions and longitudinal trajectories of sexual risk behavior among young gay and bisexual men: The P18 cohort study

Sex Differences in Virtual Network Characteristics and Sexual Risk Behavior Among Emerging Adults

Sexual identity and HIV status influence the relationship between internalized stigma and psychological distress in black gay and bisexual men

The Integrated Attachment and Sexual Minority Stress Model: Understanding the Role of Adult Attachment in the Health and Well-Being of Sexual Minority Men

Cook, S. H., & Calebs, B. J. (n.d.).

Publication year

2016

Journal title

Behavioral Medicine

Volume

42

Issue

3

Page(s)

164-173
10.1080/08964289.2016.1165173
Abstract
Abstract
Gay and bisexual boys and men experience social stigma associated with their sexual minority status that can negatively influence health. In addition, experiencing sexual orientation stigma may be linked to a decreased capacity to effectively form and maintain secure attachment relationships with parents, peers, and romantic partners across the life-course. We proposed that utilizing a framework that integrates the process by which sexual minority men develop attachment relationships in the context of sexual minority stress can lead to a better understanding of health and well-being among sexual minority boys and men. In addition, we highlight where future research can expand upon the presented model in order to better understand the developmental processes through which attachment and sexual minority stress influences health and health behaviors among sexual minority boys and men.

Transitions in Friendship Attachment during Adolescence are Associated with Developmental Trajectories of Depression Through Adulthood

HIV status disclosure, depressive symptoms, and sexual risk behavior among HIV-positive young men who have sex with men

Cook, S. H., Valera, P., & Wilson, P. A. (n.d.).

Publication year

2015

Journal title

Journal of Behavioral Medicine

Volume

38

Issue

3

Page(s)

507-517
10.1007/s10865-015-9624-7
Abstract
Abstract
The rate of HIV infection among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) is increasing in the United States, and targeted research is needed to inform interventions aimed at reducing HIV transmission in this population. This study aims to understand the association between HIV status disclosure and sexual risk behavior among HIV-positive YMSM. A particular focus is given to depressive symptoms and their potential role in explaining the association between HIV disclosure and sexual risk behavior. In a sample of 991 YMSM receiving care at 20 clinics across the United States, Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to explore these associations. Approximately one-half (52.4 %) of participants reported disclosing to their current sexual/romantic partner. Disclosure to family members was negatively associated with sexual risk behavior. Also, depressive symptoms were positively associated with sexual risk behavior. We discuss the implications of our findings for future research and intervention.

The Smoking Behaviors and Cancer-Related Disparities Among Urban Middle Aged and Older Men Involved in the Criminal Justice System

Contact

sc5810@nyu.edu 708 Broadway New York, NY, 10003
NYU School of Global Public Health
708 Broadway
New York, NY 10003

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