Dr. Wong has expertise in community-based research targeting racial/ethnic and underserved populations with a history of or who are currently using alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATOD) and engaging in HIV-related risk practices. His NIH-funded research (since 2001) focuses on the social epidemiology of ATOD, HIV, and other non-HIV sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among these populations in the China, Panamá, South Africa, Tajikistan, U.S., Việt Nam, and Russia.

Dr. Wong is one of the handful of behavioral and social sciences researchers who conduct NIH-funded research addressing the sexual health and substance use/abuse as well as other health disparities among AAPIs in the United States. In addition, he is one of the first Western investigators to examine HIV-related risks (including ATOD) among men who have sex with men in China, where they now have the highest incidence and prevalence of HIV and other non-HIV STIs such as syphilis. Collectively, these two sets of work have informed others in the field how to conduct research with these hard-to-reach and hard-to-engage populations.

Dr. Wong is also known for his work in capacity building for research infrastructure. Before returning to academia full-time in 2000, he spent 7 years of his professional career delivering social and health prevention services that targeted under-served and vulnerable populations such as immigrants and refugees (in Boston) and ex-offenders (in New York City).

EDUCATION

• Ph.D., Social Psychology (major) and Management (minor), Texas A&M University
• B.A. (Honours), Psychology, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada

HONORS/AWARDS

• Fellow, American Psychological Association
• Concurrent Professor (highest level of appointment for a non-Chinese national in recognition for contributions to the University), Fudan University, Shanghai, China

PUBLICATIONS

1. Wang L*, Hong C*, Simoni JM, He N, Hall CDX**, Wong FY. Depression as mediator between intimate partner violence (IPV) and CD4 cell count among men who have sex with men. AIDS Care, in press. 

2. Hall CDX**, Harris R*, Burns PA**, Girod C, Yount K, Wong FY. The impact of multiple forms of discrimination on perceived stress and depressive symptoms in sexual minority, Black, Indigenous, and other women of color. LGBT Health, in press. 

3. Gabster A**, Xavier Hall CD**, Pon, AY**, Millender E**, Wong FY, Pascale JM. Dating violence prevalence and risk factors among adolescents (14-19 years) in urban setting in Panama. Lancet Regional-Americas, 2023; 17: 1000383. doi: 10.1016/j.lana.2022.100383 

4. Harris RM*, Xavier Hall CD**, Mills J**, Pence BW, Bagneris J*, Wong FY. Beyond viral suppression: The impact of cumulative exposure to violence on health-related quality of life among a cohort of virally suppressed patients. JAIDS, 2023; 92(1): 59-66. doi: 10.1097/QAI. 0000000000003099 

5. Wang L*, Harris R*, Simoni JM, Yue Q, Fu J, Zheng H, Ning Z**, Xavier Hall CX**, Burns PA**, Wong FY. Health services utilization and its associations with depression and sexual risk behaviors among transgender women in Shanghai, China. Transgender Health, Published online, August 5, 2022. doi: 10.1089/trgh.2021.0009 

6. Millender E**, Harris RM*, Bagneris JR*, Marks LR**, Barcelona V, Wong FY, Crusto CA, The cumulative influence of perceived discrimination, stress, and coping responses on symptoms of depression among young African American mothers TaylorJY. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, Published online July 14, 2022. doi: 10.1177% 2F10783903221105281 

7. He J, Ding Y**, Wong FY, He N. Health-care access and utilization among HIV-infected men who have sex with men in two Chinese municipalities with or without lockdown amidst early COVID-19 pandemic. AIDS Care, 2022, 34(11): 1390-1399. doi: 10.1080/09540121. 2022. 2041163 

8. Wang L*, Lin C*, Simoni JM, He N, Li C, Chen C, Wong F. Correlates of antiretroviral therapy Frank Y. Wong April 2023 11 (ART) initiation among men who have sex with men in China. Journal of Global Health Reports, 2022; 6: e2022020. doi: 10.29392/001c.33816

FUNDED GRANTS: Ongoing Research Support

2021-26 Fostering Institutional Resources for Science Transformation: The FLORIDA-FIRST Health-science Brigade (U54CA267730-01); National Institutes of Health: PI (Contact) -- $14,593,580

2021-23 Building Resilience to Minority Stress and HIV-related Stigma for Promoting Positive Sexual Health among Vietnamese High-risk Men (R21TW011759-01A1); Fogarty International Center, National Institutions of Health: PI (Contact) -- $369,164

2021-26 The Lotus Project: Improving Trauma-informed Care and Prevention for Asian Children and Families (1H79SM085087-01); Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration Consultant (PI: TooruNemoto)

2020-23 Identifying the Influence of Genetic and Social Epigenomic Factors on Long-term Comorbid Outcomes on Depression and Cardiovascular Disease (043846); Health Data Science Institute, Office of Research, Florida State University: Co-I (PI: Eugenia Millender) -- $20,000

2018-23 Unpacking the Mechanisms of Disparities for HIV-related Hypertension in African-American andAsian/Pacific-American MSM; National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (R01MD013501-01): PI (Contact) -- $3,425,404