Research for People and Communities. Migration, immigration, education, oral history, memory, and social change.

Community-engaged inquiry

People’s experiences belong at the center.

My research explores how policies, institutions, and historical forces shape the lives of individuals, families, and communities.

Using qualitative interviews, community-engaged research, and oral history, I examine migration and immigration; organizations, race, and child welfare; and memory, culture, and disaster recovery. Across these areas, lived experience provides an essential way to understand social and structural change.

Current projects

Questions shaping the work now.

Migration & immigration · 2026–ongoing

Self-Deportation and Migration Decision-Making

Experiences of Immigrants Affected by U.S. Immigration Policies and Enforcement

This qualitative study examines how immigration policies and enforcement influence decisions about remaining in or leaving the United States. It centers immigrants who have left, or are seriously considering leaving, without having been formally deported or removed.

In-depth interviews explore fear of detention, family separation, immigration status, employment restrictions, and access to services, alongside the personal and social consequences of making life-changing decisions under uncertainty.

Co-principal investigators: Christiana Best-Giacomini, Ph.D., and Smita Dwan, Ph.D.
Research team: Kristiana Beho, LCSW; Christel Chavez, MSW student.

Research inquiries
Oral history, memory & disaster · 2026–ongoing

Rising from the Waves

Carriacou and Petite Martinique’s Stories of Survival and Strength

An oral history and cultural preservation project documenting life before, during, and after Hurricane Beryl in July 2024. Trauma-informed interviews preserve accounts of loss, displacement, survival, and rebuilding alongside the traditions, places, and relationships that shaped island life.

The project examines how cultural knowledge, social networks, collective memory, and local resources support recovery, with residents’ voices central to the telling of their own history.

Principal investigator: Christiana Best-Giacomini, Ph.D.

Explore Rising from the Waves

Completed projects

Research across communities and institutions.

Moving the Needle on Organizational Culture 2024–2026

A qualitative case study of organizational culture and change in a public child welfare agency. Drawing on 29 interviews and Ripple Effect Mapping, the study explored employees’ experiences of leadership, communication, relationships, morale, and the agency’s capacity to sustain change.

Principal investigator: Christiana Best-Giacomini, Ph.D.
Research team: Marie Cannon, Kim Crawford, Alexis Howard, Winnie W. Hasheela, Catherine Gavin, Nancy Claiborne, and Mary McCarthy.

Beyond Borders: Educating Migrant Children in U.S. Schools 2024–2026

A multi-state qualitative study of how schools respond to recently arrived migrant children and families. Interviews with educators, social workers, counselors, administrators, and other professionals examined language access, housing instability, health needs, immigration-related fears, interrupted education, and connections to community resources.

The study considers both structural barriers and the innovative responses of school communities, recognizing the resilience of migrant children and families.

Principal investigator: Christiana Best-Giacomini, Ph.D.
Research team: Elaine Aboni, LMSW; Kristiana Beho, LCSW; Avery Smith, MSW student.

Microaggressions and the Caribbean Diaspora 2019–2021

This qualitative project examined racial and cultural microaggressions experienced by Caribbean immigrants and people of Caribbean heritage in the United States. It explored how assumptions about accents, nationality, intelligence, belonging, and identity shape everyday encounters and how participants interpret and respond to them.

Principal investigator: Christiana Best-Giacomini, Ph.D.
Research team: Catherine Holt, LMSW; Lear Matthews, DSW.

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