Dr. Griffith is an innovator in the study of health equity, especially the social, economic, and political factors that impact the health of Black and Latino men. He develops new policy strategies to promote better health outcomes and health equity, especially through community-based, individually tailored, and precision lifestyle interventions that aim to prevent and control obesity and chronic diseases in middle-aged Black men. His research focuses in particular on the links between health and conceptions of masculinity among men of color, the influence of stress and coping processes on health disparities, and the intersections of gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and other variables in shaping men’s health behaviors and outcomes. His research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, among numerous others.
Dr. Griffith received a citation from the president of the American Psychological Association “for his extraordinary leadership in addressing the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the nation and specifically for African American and Latino men.” Dr. Griffith serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Men’s Social & Community Health, and he is a member of the boards of the American Institute for Boys and Men, Global Action on Men’s Health, and the Movember Foundation. He has been interviewed for and quoted in national news outlets such as NPR, the Washington Post, and the New York Times.
He comes to Penn from Georgetown University where he was professor of health management and policy in the School of Health, founder and director of the Center for Men’s Health Equity, and co-director of the Racial Justice Institute following earlier faculty appointments at Vanderbilt University and the University of Michigan and a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He received a Ph.D. and M.A. in clinical psychology from DePaul University and a B.A. in psychology and Afro-American studies from the University of Maryland at College Park.
