Thai V. Le

As a mixed-methods researcher, Dr. Thai V. Le utilizes statistical models, ethnographic practices, and spatial tools to study a range of issues, including naturalization, regressive and discriminatory local financing practices, the digital divide, emotional justice, and burnout among public sector workers. In uplifting social equity and intersectionality, his research also disaggregates data to elevate the narratives of marginalized and minoritized communities. At ERI, Dr. Le has worked on a range of projects, including Asian American Immigrant Inclusion in California: Citizenship, Community, and Policy, Naturalize Now: Economic Equity and the Path to Naturalization, The Shrinking Geography of Opportunity in Metro America, Interactive Map: Eligible to naturalize Adults by Probability of Naturalization, and California 100: Immigrant Integration and the Future of the Golden State. Dr. Le is also co-leading the evaluation of the RepresentLA program, identifying the impact of the program and opportunities for improvement.

Dr. Le earned his Ph.D. in Public Policy and Management from the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy and a Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Science and Technology (GIST) from the USC Dornsife Spatial Sciences Institute, where his research focused on issues of social equity. His dissertation examines the diverging pathways to citizenship and immigrant integration in the United States and extrapolates the multiplicative effects of racialized and gendered barriers within immigrant communities. Dr. Le’s postdoctoral work takes a mixed-methods approach in exploring the immigrant inclusion landscape in California to identify strategies in mobilizing and organizing hard-to-reach immigrant populations.

Dr. Le’s passions in life beyond his advocacy work include traveling and eating noodles.

Select Peer-Reviewed  Publications

• Le, Thai V. and Cynthia Barboza-Wilkes “The Role of Cultural Competency in Crafting and Delivering Public Services.” Positive Public Administration
• Le, Thai V. and Cynthia Barboza-Wilkes “How Self-Determination Moderates Burnout in Public Organizations Across Gender, Race, and Generation.” Public Personnel Management https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026023119127.
• Barboza-Wilkes, Cynthia and Thai V. Le. “Qualitative Diary Designs as a Compassionate Research Design for Times of Disruption.” Public Integrity https://doi.org/10.1080/10999922.2023.2236413.
• Le, Thai V., Hernan Galperin, and Dorian Traube. “The Impact of Digital Competence on Telehealth Utilization.” Journal of Health Policy and Technology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hlpt.2023.100724
• Barboza-Wilkes, Cynthia, Thai V. Le, and Marisa Turesky. “Emotional Socialization in Times of Disruption: A Mixed-Methods Case Study of Emotional Labor Among Nonprofit Employees During COVID-19.” Journal of Research on Emotion in Organizations. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1746-979120220000018002
• Le, Thai V. and Matthew Young. “Regressive Revenue Sourcing by Local Governments.” Urban Studies. https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980221124456
• Le, Thai V. and Manuel Pastor. “Family Matters: Modeling Naturalization Propensities in the United States.” International Migration Review Journal. https://doi.org/10.1177/01979183221112898
• Le, Thai V. and Cynthia Barboza-Wilkes. “How the Treatment of Asian Americans as Model Minorities and Perpetual Foreigners Shape Their Experiences with Burnout in Local Government.” Public Integrity Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080/10999922.2022.2071516
•  Barboza-Wilkes, Cynthia, Thai V. Le, and William Resh. “Deconstructing Burnout at the Intersections of Race, Gender, and Generation in Local Government.” Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muac018
• Galperin, Hernan, Thai V. Le, and Kurt Wyatt. “Who Gets Access to Fast Broadband? Evidence from Los Angeles County 2014-2017.” Government Information Quarterly Journal. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2021.101594