Joanne Qina'au, PhD, MA, E-YT750

Research Interests  

• Reimagining wellbeing theory, measurement, and intervention design through decolonialism and indigenizing

• Exploring the intersections of Indigenous wellbeing and contemplative practice

• Leading community-based research in the reduction of transdiagnostic symptoms of traumatic stress for underserved communities and individuals (e.g., Native Hawaiians, Indigenous groups, SGM, global majority) using mind body practices (e.g., mindfulness, Yoga, meditation, biofeedback, therapy)

• Examining the role of cultural factors in intervention design

• Transforming the landscape of integrative health equity

• Mixed-methods research approaches

Experience and Current Work  

Dr. Qinaʻau is a Kanaka ʻŌiwi integrative clinical psychologist and an NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health T32 research fellow. They recently used the transformative paradigm and mixed-methods community-based participatory approaches to advance decolonial and indigenized wellbeing theory and measure development for Kānaka ʻŌiwi facing behavioral health challenges. Dr. Qinaʻau continues to explore wellbeing interventions through collaborations on two NIH-funded networks focused on emotional wellbeing. With the Mechanisms Underlying Mind-Body Interventions & Measurement of Emotional Well-Being Network, they collaborated to develop a pilot study examining the mechanisms of Yoga interventions in enhancing emotional wellbeing and are currently working on a systematic review of school-based mindfulness interventions. With the Plasticity of Well-being Network, they are examining interoceptive awareness and emotional wellbeing using meta-analytic methods. Dr. Qinaʻau’s scholarship also examines Indigenous wellbeing theories to inform more equitable public policy in response to the climate crisis and highlighting the role of culturally sustaining purpose in wellbeing development in diverse communities.    

In previous trauma research, they identified the buffering effects of physical activity on transdiagnostic symptoms of interpersonal developmental trauma (e.g., dissociation) for Kānaka ʻŌiwi. They applied similar methods to examine the impact of trauma exposure in Mixed emerging adults on mindfulness, wellbeing, and psychological distress.    

Additionally, Dr. Qinaʻau has contributed to mindfulness and meditation research by collaboratively developing a framework to differentiate key features of meditation- and mindfulness-based interventions. Their prior work includes examining mindfulness interventions in Asian American communities and exploring cultural factors in evidence-based practices such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) with a process-based approach.  

Education and Training  

• PhD, Clinical Psychology, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

• Clinical Fellow in Psychology, Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at Massachusetts Mental Health Center

• Research Fellow, Mechanisms Underlying Mind-Body Interventions & Measurement of Emotional Well-Being Network

• Emerging Scholar, Plasticity of Well-being Research Network

• MA, Psychology in Education (Clinical Psychology), Teachers College, Columbia University

• BA, English Literature, Tufts University

• Certified Experienced Yoga Teacher E-YT750

• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Qualified Teacher (2025)

Publications  

Masuda, A., Nakamura, L., Preston-Pita, H., Hermosura, S., Morgan, L., Stueber, K., Spencer, S. D., Qinaʻau, J., & Austin-Seabury, A. A. (2024). Native Hawaiians’ Views on Depression and Preferred Behavioral Health Treatments: A Preliminary Qualitative Investigation. The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 51(2), 203–218.

Renna, M.E., Spaeth, P.E., Behringer, K.F., Qina’au, J., Clayton, M., Mennin, D.S. (In press). Differential relationships between inflammation and emotion dysregulation across young and middle adulthood. Health Psychology.    

Qina‘au, J., Masuda, A., &  Spencer, S. (In press). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Among Ethnoracial Groups. In Chang, E., Lucas, A. (Eds.), Cognitive and Behavioral Interventions with Ethnoracial Groups: Clinical Strategies and Techniques for the Springer Nature series CBT: Science into Practice. Springer Nature.

Qina‘au, J., Hill, P. L. (2023). Finding Direction for Purpose Research in Hawai‘i: A Narrative Review. Hawai‘i Journal of Health & Social Welfare, 83(4), 108-112.

Qina‘au, J., Spencer, S., & Sasaki, J. (2023). Trauma in Mixed vs. Monoracial Emerging Adults in Hawaiʻi: Implications for Mindfulness, Psychological Distress, and Wellbeing. International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling, 46(1), 1-19.

Qina‘au, J., & Antonio, M. C. (2022). Wellbeing for all: Indigenizing theories and measures of wellbeing for equitable sustainability. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.979109

Qina‘au, J., Edmonds, G. W., & Hill, P. L. (2022). Native Hawaiian wellbeing and transdiagnostic trauma symptoms: The protective role of physical activity in dissociation. European Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 6(4), 100296.

Spencer, S. D., Jo, D., Antonio, M., Qina‛au, J., Hishinuma, E. S., Hamagami, F., & Masuda, A. (2022) A Psychometric Validation of Contextual Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-Informed Measures with Racially and Ethnically Diverse Adults. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 25, 61-72.

Masuda, A., Morgan, L., Spencer, S.D., Qina‘au, J., & Jo, D. (2022) Cultural adaptations of acceptance and commitment therapy. In Twohig, M.P., Levin, M.E., & Petersen, J.M. (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Oxford University Press.

Masuda, A. & Qinaʻau, J. (2022). Application of Secular Mindfulness to Asian Americans in the U.S.: Cultural Considerations. In C.M. Fleming, J. Proulx, & V. Womack (Eds.). Beyond White Mindfulness: Critical Perspectives on Racism, Well-being, and Liberation. Routledge.

Masuda, A., Qinaʻau, J., Juberg, M., & Martin, T. (2021). Bias in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 and Psychopathology. In L. Benuto, M. Duckworth, A. Masuda, & W. O’Donohue (Eds.). Prejudice, Stigma, Privilege, and Oppression: A Behavioral Health Handbook. Springer Publications. 

Pilla, D., Qina‘au, J., Patel, A., Meddaoui, B., Watson, N., Dugad, S., & Saskin, M. (2020). Toward a Framework for Reporting and Differentiating Key Features of Meditation-and Mindfulness-Based Interventions. Mindfulness, 11(11), 2613-2628.

Qinaʻau, J. &  Masuda, A. (2020). Cultural Considerations in Establishing Rapport: A Functional Contextualist View on Common Factors. In L. Benuto, F. Gonzalez, & J. Singer (Eds.). Handbook for Cultural Factors in Behavioral Health: A Guide for the Helping Professional. New York: Springer Publications.