Dr. Anissa Chitwanga, MSW, Ph.D.

Email: chitsan@txstate.edu

Dr. Chitwanga earned her bachelor’s degree in Humanities from the University of Malawi with a minor in Psychology, an MSW from Michigan State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research centers on several key areas: Advancing mental health equity among at-risk populations, with a particular emphasis on young women in marginalized communities, access to public benefits for minority groups and immigrants, the use of simulation as a pedagogical tool for teaching social work ethics, values, and cultural competency, and the dynamics of unhealthy sexual relationships between young women and older men, particularly the Blesser/Slay Queen phenomenon (A variation of Sugar Daddy relationships). She is particularly interested in the mental, sexual, and reproductive health of young women involved in these relationships. She is passionate about qualitative research and is trained in Attachment Style Interviewing.

She is a 2015 Mastercard Foundation Scholar and as an advocate, Dr. Chitwanga has made significant contributions, including her role as an Advocacy and Campaign Officer for Save the Children International, where she focused on empowering girls and young women. Her research also addresses critical issues such as poverty and social justice. Additionally, she is passionate about international social work, gender and women’s advocacy studies, and community-engaged research. 

RESEARCH INTERESTS: Mental health equity, poverty, global social work, social justice, diversity in social work, simulations as a tool for the advancement of social work education, intervention/implementation research and community engaged research