A primary interest of mine is the study of cultural idioms of distress, most notably ataques de nervios (or nervous attacks).  Growing up, I witnessed my mother having ataques and to see her in such a painful state, left an indelible impression on me.  To date, I have written about its association with physical and mental health among Puerto Rican children. 

​​Publications

Lewis-Fernández, R., & López, I. (2016). Ataques de Nervios. In B. A. Sharpless (Ed.). Unusual and Rare Psychological Disorders: A Handout for Clinical Practice and Research. Oxford University Press.
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López, I & *Ho., A. (2013). Culture-bound or culturally salient? Unbinding the culture-bound syndromes. In K. Keith (Ed.). Encyclopedia of Cross Cultural Psychology.  Wiley Blackwell Publishers. (Accepted).

López, I., Ramirez, R., Guarnaccia, P., Canino, G., & Bird, H. (2011). Ataques de nervios and somatic complaints among  Island  and Mainland  Puerto Rican children. CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics, 17, (3), 158-166.  doi:  10.1111/j.1755-5949.2010.00137.x

López, I., Rivera, F., Ramirez, R. Guarnaccia, P., Canino, G. & Bird, H. (2009). Ataques de nervios and their psychiatric correlates in Puerto Rican children from two different contexts. Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, iii-x, 12,923-929. doi:10.1097/NMD.0b013e3181c2997d​
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Presentations

Here I am giving a presentation on the experience of ataques among Puerto Rican children.
Symposium on Latino Youth

Posters