Linda C. Gallo PhD

Dr. Gallo joined the faculty of San Diego State University (SDSU) in 2001. She is a Professor in the Department of Psychology, a core faculty member in the SDSU/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, and Co-Director of the South Bay Latino Research Center at SDSU. She has 20 years of postdoctoral research experience focused on elucidating sociocultural factors in chronic cardio-metabolic diseases and developing and testing culturally appropriate interventions to reduce disparities in these conditions among underserved groups, especially Hispanics/Latinos. 

Her research has been continuously supported through > 20 NIH awards since 2002, has yielded more than 170 peer-reviewed publications, and its impact has been recognized through honors from SDSU and national organizations. Dr. Gallo has been a Co-I for the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) (https://sites.cscc.unc.edu/hchs/) since its initiation in 2007, and has served as Co-PI of the San Diego field center since 2018. She is a Principal Investigator (PI) for the ongoing “SOL CASAS” study of neighborhood environment and cardiometabolic risk in the San Diego SOL cohort, she previously served as PI for the national HCHS/SOL Sociocultural Ancillary Study, and she is San Diego consortium PI for two ongoing HCHS/SOL ancillary studies addressing cognitive aging and brain health, and their associations with vascular risk factors and genetic factors. 

She is also co-leading three NIH-funded randomized controlled trials testing behavioral/psychosocial interventions to improve patient care and outcomes in Hispanics/Latinos with diabetes and related chronic conditions. Unique features of the interventions include delivery by low-cost personnel working at top of license, technological advances to improve patient adherence and provider-patient communication, and integrated models that address both behavioral and physical healthcare needs of underserved patients of San Diego federally qualified health centers, and a local safety net hospital.