Richard M. Lee

Richard M. Lee, PhD is a Distinguished McKnight University Professor and the Associate Chair for Research in the Department of Psychology. He is the current chair for the Society for Research on Child Development Asian Caucus, past editor for Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, and past president of the Asian American Psychological Association. For the past twenty years, Dr. Lee has been conducting research on children, youth, and adults who were adopted internationally from South Korea into White American families. He has sought to unpack the ways in which Korean adoptees and their parents negotiate and resolve the paradoxical challenges of growing up transracially and transnationally in the United States. His work highlights the role of ethnic and racial socialization, ethnic-racial identity development, and experiences with ethnic-racial discrimination. Dr. Lee is now examining birth family thoughts, search, and reunion, the use and bioethics of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, and the romantic and parenting experiences of adult adoptees.

Title of presentation: Doing ethnicity and race in everyday life

Abstract: This presentation will address the psychological science of growing up and living life as a transracial and transnational adopted person. Using a critical adoption and critical race framework, I will present qualitative and quantitative research findings on the ethnic identity development and perceived discrimination experiences of Korean adoptees who were raised in White families and are now raising children of their own.