The Underrepresentation of Latinx Students in the Professional Dissemination of Psychology Research

Latinx students are well represented among undergraduate psychology majors. However, there is an underrepresentation of Latinxs in psychology graduate programs, among faculty, and licensed practitioners. This underrepresentation is evidence of a leaky pipeline of attrition among Latinx psychology students from bachelor to postbachelor career tracks. The present research investigates one point of this leaky pipeline-research activity and professional dissemination of research. We used public data sets and surname matching to compare Latinx student representation at a regional psychology conference to Latinx enrollment and psychology degree completions at colleges and universities represented at the conference. We found consistent evidence of Latinx underrepresentation in the professional dissemination of research. This underrepresentation occurred at both federally designated Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) and non-HSIs. This research shows one point in the academic pipeline in psychological science at which Latinx students are underrepresented. Results provide evidence for a lack of recruitment of Latinx students into the research process. This disparity in research activity may lead to attrition from undergraduate to postbachelor education and career tracks in psychology. Strategies that faculty and departments can employ to address these disparities are discussed.