Shirley Chau
Assistant Professor
Educational Background
- PhD (Toronto)
- MSW (Toronto)
- BSW (UBC)
- BA (Hons.) Psychology (SFU)
General Background
Shirley Chau is an Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work. She teaches undergraduate-level courses in research methods, social policy, and social welfare, and a graduate-level health interprofessional course on health-interprofessional research and evidence-based practice. Central to her teaching approach is the anti-racist and anti-oppressive lens for clinical practice, and social and organizational change.
Shirley’s clinical interests and experience are in the areas of work and wellness, crisis intervention, psychological trauma, and individual counseling. In addition, Shirley is an active researcher on marginalized populations and health, as well as on practice and policy relevant issues related to child welfare. She was a research trainee under the CIHR Strategic Training Program in the Transdisciplinary Approach to the Health of Marginalized Populations at the Centre for Research on Inner City Health (CRICH), St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ontario. She brings a transdisciplinary perspective on health research to the faculty and is interested in opportunities for collaboration with a diverse range of researchers and community health practitioners. Her interest in conducting research on vulnerable and marginalized populations includes previous research on: housing issues in child welfare; the impact of inquests on child welfare organizations; the health and wellbeing of Chinese Canadian seniors; the settlement experiences of Asian immigrant adolescents; and more recently, the health and wellbeing of homeless youth exposed to violence on the streets of Toronto’s inner city. Currently, she is an investigator on several grants to study the actualization of multiculturalism policies in BC (PI, SSHRC, $49, 498), the pathways to youth homelessness in Kelowna (PI, UBC Internal Grants, $5,000), and the migration of homeless populations between Kelowna and Vancouver (Co-I, PI: Dr. Jim Frankish, UBC, BC Medical Services Foundation, $49,608).
Shirley’s teaching interests are critical social work practice, research methods and statistics, and social work practice with vulnerable and marginalized populations. Her research interests are health and homelessness, cross-cultural social work practice, health disparities, occupational health and wellness, and social work education and practice outcomes.
Teaching Interests
- Individual practice
- Critical social work practice
- Research methods and statistics
- Social work practice with vulnerable and marginalized populations
Research Interests
- Health and homelessness
- Cross-cultural social work practice
- Health disparities
- Occupational health and wellness
- Social work education and practice
Current Research Projects & Funding
UBC Okanagan Interdisciplinary/Collaborative Research Grant Program, $10,000, Principal Investigator
Project: Investigating the impact of temporary housing on health outcomes among homeless adults in Kelowna
PIs: S. Chau
Co-Is:W.Watts, S. Turner, A. Hughes
2008 -2009
CIHR Development Grant: Aboriginal Health, $48,000, Co-Investigator
Project: From planning to practice: Urban Aboriginal Health
PIs: R. Hole, J. Bottorff, M. Evans, L. Berg
Co-Is: D. Sookraj, L. Bryant-MacLean (IHA)
01/2007 - 12/2007
British Columbia Medical Services Foundation, $49,608, Co-Investigator
Project: Urban-Rural Migration & Health & Quality of Life in Homeless People
PI: Jim Frankish
Co-I: Tim Huerta
12/2006 - 06/2007
SSHRC/Multiculturalism (Strategic Grant), $49,498, Principal Investigator
Project: From policies on paper to actions in the community: A comparative study of the implementation of multiculturalism policies in rural and urban BC.
Co-Is: Miu Chung Yan, Dave Sangha
02/2006 - 08/2007
Health Research Resource Office, UBC Office of Research Services, $5,000, Principal Investigator
Project: Youth homelessness and health needs in the City of Kelowna
Office of the Deputy Vice Chancellor, UBC Office of Research Services, $5,000, Principal Investigator
Project: Youth homelessness in the City of Kelowna
12/2005 - 03/2007
Publications
Lai, D.W.L., Tsang, K.T., Chappell, N., Lai, D.C.Y., & Chau, S.B.Y. (2007) Relationships between culture and health status: A multi-site study of the older Chinese in Canada. Canadian Journal on Aging, 26 (3) : 171 – 184.
Lai, D., & Chau, S. (2007). Effects of service barriers on health status of elderly Chinese immigrants in Canada. Social Work, 52, 261-269.
Lai, D.W.L., & Chau, S. (2007). Predictors of health service barriers for older Chinese immigrants in Canada. Health & Social Work, 32(1), 57-65.
Regehr, C, Leslie, B., Howe, P., & Chau, S. (2005). Stress, Trauma, and Support in Child Welfare Practice. The APSAC Advisor, 17(2), 12 - 18.
Regehr, C., Hemsworth, D., Leslie, B., Howe, P., & Chau, S. (2004). Predictors of post-traumatic distress in child welfare workers: A linear structural equation model. Children and Youth Services Review, 26, 331 - 346.
Tsang, K.T., Irving, H., Alaggia, R., Chau, S., & Benjamin, M. (2003). Negotiating Ethnic Identity. Youth & Society Journal, 34(3), 359 - 384.
Regehr, C., Chau, S., Leslie, B., & Howe, P. (2002). Inquiries into the deaths of children: Impacts on child welfare workers and their organizations. Children and Youth Services Review, 24, pp. 885 - 902.
Regehr, C., Chau, S., Leslie, B., & Howe, P. (2002). An exploration of supervisors' and managers' response to child welfare reform. Administration in Social Work, 26 (3), 17 - 36.
Alaggia, R., Chau, S., and Tsang, K. T. (2001). Astronaut Asian families: Impact of migration on family structure from the perspective of the youth. Journal of Social Work Evaluation and Research: An International Journal, 2(2), 295 – 306.
Presentations
Chau, S. (2006). Unique stressors and stress of being young and homeless in a Canadian city: Implications for delivery of social care. Presented at the 5th International Conference on Social Work in Health and Mental Health, Dec 14, 2006, Hong Kong, China.
Chau, S. (2006) Understanding service barriers reported by ethnic minority elderly: A case of older Chinese immigrants in Canada. Presented at the American Society on Aging; 2006 Joint Conference of the National Council on the Aging and the American Society on aging; Anaheim, California, United States.
Co presenters: Daniel Lai.
Chau, S. (2005). The effects of exposure to violence on the health and well-being of homeless youth in inner city Toronto: An ecological approach. Presented at the Council on Social Work Education Conference, Chicago, Illinois, United States, February, 2005.
Chau, S. (2005) The health status of homeless youth in Toronto. Presented at the National Homelessness Initiative (Sponsors: SSHRC,& CMHC), Canadian Conference on Homelessness, May 5, 2005, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Chau, S. (2005). Conversations of pedagogy. Presented at the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies and the Faculty of Education; Provoking Curriculum Conference, February 2005, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Co presenters: Drs. R. Hole, L. Beauchesne
Chau, S. (2005). The relationship of violence exposure on psychological distress and functioning while on the streets: A Canadian study of homeless youths' experiences. Presented at the Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference, October 2005, Miami, Florida, United States.
Co presenter: Dr. C. Regehr
Chau, S. (2004). The health status of homeless youth in inner city Toronto. Presented at the International Society for Urban Health; Third International Conference on Urban Health, October 21, 2004, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
Co presenters: Drs. S. Rourke , J. Langley, D. Wasylenki
Chau, S. (2003). Impact of culture on the health of older Chinese in Canada. Presented at the Canadian Association on Gerontology, Nov. 9, 2003, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Co presenters: Drs. K. Tsang, D. Lai, N. Chappell, D. Lai
Chau, S. (2003) Applied social work research with oppressed populations: A doctoral student's journey with a 100 homeless youth and counting. Presented at the International Society for Urban Health, Second International Conference on Urban Health, October 23, 2003, New York, United States.
Chau, S. (2003). Teaching anti-oppressive practice and safety in the classroom: Is safety in the eyes of the instructor? Presented at the Canadian Association of Schools of Social work; Congress of the Social Sciences and Humanities, May 7, 2003, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Co presenters: J. Hughes, S. Sherman, P. James
Chau, S. (2003). Barriers to service utilization and impacts on mental health of older Chinese Canadians. Presented at the Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work; Congress of the Social Sciences and Humanities, May 9, 2003, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Co presenters: Drs. D. Lai, K. Tsang, N. Chappell, D. Lai
Chau, S. (2003) Culture and health of elderly Chinese: A multi-site study in Canada. Presented at the American Society on Aging, Joint Conference of the National Council on the Aging and the American Society on Aging, February 2003, Chicago, Illinois, United States.
Co presenters: Drs. D. Lai, D. Lai, K. Tsang, N. Chappell
Chau, S. (2003). Chinese Canadian seniors' experience of barriers to service utilization and its impact on mental health. Presented at the World Federation of Mental Health; World Federation of Mental Health Biennial Congress 2003, February 2003, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Co presenters: Drs. D. Lai, D. Lai, K. Tsang, N. Chappell.
Chau. S. (2002) Housing issues in child welfare: Research and action. Presented at the Child Welfare League of Canada; Canada's Children, Canada's Future, Third National Conference, May 2002, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Co presenters: Dr. D. Hulchanski, A. Fitzpatrick, B. Leslie
Chau, S. (2002). Stress and trauma in child welfare practice. Presented at the Child Welfare League of Canada; Canada's Children, Canada's Future, Third National Conference, May 2002, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Co presenters: Dr. C. Regehr, B. Leslie, P. Howe
Last reviewed 
9/12/2011 3:19:42 PM
