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Leigh Spivey-Rita

Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Psychiatry, Child & Family Mental Health & Community Psychiatry
2608 Erwin Road, Box 102505, Durham, NC 27710

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences · 2023 - Present Psychiatry, Child & Family Mental Health & Community Psychiatry, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences

In the News


Published June 29, 2021
Supporting Transgender Mental Health During Transition

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Recent Publications


Forms of Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Suicidal Ideation: A Prospective Examination of African-American and Latinx Youth.

Journal Article J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol · 2022 Although suicide is the second leading cause of death among adolescents, research revealing potent predictors of suicidal thoughts above and beyond the effects of depressive symptoms is limited, especially among racial and ethnic minority youth. This prosp ... Full text Link to item Cite

Cardiovascular and cortisol responses to experimentally-induced minority stress.

Journal Article Health Psychol · May 2021 OBJECTIVE: Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals who report greater minority stress (e.g., discrimination) are at an elevated risk for multiple health problems. However, few studies have examined physiological mechanisms that might link minority str ... Full text Link to item Cite

Developmental patterns of sexual identity, romantic attraction, and sexual behavior among adolescents over three years.

Journal Article J Adolesc · December 2019 INTRODUCTION: Adolescents are heterogeneous in how they define and experience their sexual orientation, which can include specific identity labels, romantic attractions, and other- and/or same-sex sexual behavior. These three components of sexual orientati ... Full text Link to item Cite
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Recent Grants


2/4 Adapting Treatments for Suicidal College Students: A Multisite Trial

ResearchIndependent Evaluator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2019 - 2025

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Education, Training & Certifications


University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · 2020 Ph.D.