I am an Assistant Professor of Social Work at Tunghai University and an International Affiliate at the Global Center for Applied Health Research at Arizona State University. I earned my PhD in Social Work at ASU under the mentorship of Dr. Flavio F. Marsiglia, where I worked as a graduate research assistant on substance use prevention research with adolescents (Keepin' it REAL) and a multisite parenting intervention program for urban American Indian parents (Parenting in 2 Worlds). 

My research focuses on how evidence-based interventions can be adapted and implemented to address social determinants of health and reduce ethnoracial disparities. I am especially committed to advancing the health and well-being of Indigenous peoples.

In my dissertation, I applied advanced quantitative methods to examine how childhood experiences of living on or off reservation shape family dynamics in adulthood among urban American Indian parents in Arizona. By identifying four distinct family dynamics profiles and testing the mediating role of cultural engagement, my work moves beyond oversimplified narratives of urban Indigenous families and points to culturally grounded pathways for strengthening families in urban settings.

I have also conducted qualitative research with diverse Indigenous communities in Taiwan, including seniors, young adults, and sexual and LGB populations. With training in both quantitative and qualitative methods, he brings skills to complex questions of health, culture, and resilience.

• Evidence-based Substance Use Prevention with Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges and Opportunities. [LINK]

Flavio F. Marsiglia, Chao-Kai Huang, James Herbert Williams, Samuel Munyuwiny, Lefate Makunyane, Daniel I. Molobe, Rachel Freeman, Stephen S. Kulis, Ijeoma Ogbonnaya, & Elizabeth Lightfoot. (2025). Substance Use & Addiction Journal. Advance online publication.

• Substance Use among Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Narrative Review of Epidemiological Data. [LINK]

Flavio F. Marsiglia, Chao-Kai Huang, James Herbert Williams, Samuel Munyuwiny, Lefate Makunyane, Daniel I. Molobe, Rachel Freeman, Stephen S. Kulis, Ijeoma Ogbonnaya, & Elizabeth Lightfoot. (2024). African Journal of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 12, 80-112.

• Feasibility, Acceptability and Utility of the Evidence-based Keepin´ it REAL Substance Abuse Prevention Program for Early Adolescents in Kenyan Schools. [LINK] 

Stephen S. Kulis, Flavio F. Marsiglia, Olalla Cutrín, Samuel Munyuwiny, Chao-Kai Huang, Kyle Gresenz, & Ana Paola Campos. (2023).  African Journal of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 9, 41–59. 

• Association between Community Attachment and Prescription Drug Misuse among American Indian Adolescents in Arizona. [LINK]

Chao-Kai Huang, Shiyou Wu, Flavio F. Marsigli, & Ana Paola Campos. (2023). Societies, 13(4), 79. 

• A Pilot Study of an Evidence-based Prevention Intervention (keepin’ it REAL) for Early Adolescents in Kenyan Schools. [LINK]

Flavio F. Marsiglia, Stephen S. Kulis, Samuel Munyuwiny, Olalla Cutrín, Kyle Gresenz, Omondi Osir, & Chao-Kai Huang. (2023). Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 84(1), 45–50. 

• Reconnecting with the Farmland: Exploring Indigenous Resilience of Atayal People in Taiwan. [LINK]

Chao-Kai Huang. (2022). In H. Weaver (Ed.), The Routledge International Handbook of Indigenous Resilience (pp. 271–284). Abingdon, United Kingdom: Routledge. 

• Am I Indigenous Enough? The Challenge of Perceived Discrimination among Urban Indigenous Young Adults in Taiwan. [LINK]

Ciwang Teyra, Chao-Kai Huang, & Lahok Ciwko. (2022). Formosa Journal of Mental Health, 35(3), 249–274. (in Mandarin)

• Challenges and Coping Strategies among Indigenous Gay People in Facing Intersectionality. [LINK]

Ciwang Teyra, Chao-Kai Huang, & Wan-Jung Hsieh. (2021). NTU Social Work Review, 43, 1–53. (in Mandarin) 

• The Presence and Resistance among Indigenous LGBT Activists. 

Ciwang Teyra, Chao-Kai Huang, Yu-Wei Cheng, Lahok Ciwko, & Wan-Jung Hsieh. (2021). In Y.-K. Huang (Ed.), “Social Movement” in Contemporary Daily Life (1st ed., pp. 97–150). Socio Publishing. (in Mandarin) 

• Manu Ka Kmlawa Rudan? An Exploratory Study of the Eldercare Beliefs Held by Truku Elders from the Ciyakang Community. [LINK]

Ciwang Teyra, Yabung Haning, Chao-Kai Huang, Wan-Jung Hsieh, & Lbak Uking. (2022). Formosa Journal of Mental Health, 35(3), 227–247. (in Mandarin) 

• Practicing Cultural Care by Integrating Ethnic Beliefs and Christianity: An Exploratory Study of Atayal Tribes along the Da An River. [LINK]

Chao-Kai Huang & Yi-Yi Chen. (2019). Formosa Journal of Mental Health, 32(2), 183–208. (in Mandarin) 

• Measuring Indigenous Household Resilience to Global Environmental Changes: Psychometrics and Face Validity Scale Development. 

Shanondora Billiot, Chao-Kai Huang, Nidia Hernandez, Jessica Elm, Balakrishnan Balachandran, & Jasmine Fournier. (Accepted). Journal of Climate Change and Health. 

• Examining Municipal Heat Problem Framings and Social Vulnerability: Implications for Social Work.

Chao-Kai Huang & Nadia Neimanas (In Press). Social Work Research. 

• The 100 Leading Contributors to English-Language Gerontological Journals: An International Study of Scholarly Impact. [LINK]

David R. Hodge, Patricia R. Turner, & Chao-Kai Huang. (2024). Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 67(1), 3–18. 

• Identifying the leading global contributors to scholarship in religion journals: A bibliometric study. [LINK]

David R. Hodge, Patricia R. Turner, & Chao-Kai Huang. (2023). Journal of Religion and Health, 62(5), 3501-3519.

• Schrödinger's Manuscript: Simultaneously Finished and Unfinished Until Observed by a Reviewer. 

Chao-Kai Huang & Various Doctoral Students. (Under construction).

• The Art of Turning Coffee into Publications: A Four-Year Longitudinal Study with Self-Delusion as Mediator.

Chao-Kai Huang. (Coming soon... maybe).

• The Taco Lover's Guide to Finding the Best Sonoran-style Taco in Taiwan: A Cross-Cultural Culinary Expedition.

Chao-Kai Huang. (Data collection in progress).

• ... to be continued!