Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are the gold standard for assessing interventions for preventing and treating cancer, but their external validity is only guaranteed if the trial participants are a random sample from the target population. Unfortunately, most cancer-related RCTs use convenience samples, not probability samples, and differences between the trial sample and the target population… Continue reading A sensitivity analysis framework for generalizing randomized clinical trial results in the presence of unmeasured treatment effect modifier
Research Theme: ISR
Improving Inclusivity of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias Research for Asian Americans and Latinx through Nationally Representative Hybrid Sampling
Alzheimers Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD), set as a public health priority by the World Health Organization, is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S.; however, a dearth of ADRD research data that consider dynamics across racial/ethnic groups beyond minimum standard racial/ethnic categories is detrimental to understanding a comprehensive picture of the… Continue reading Improving Inclusivity of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias Research for Asian Americans and Latinx through Nationally Representative Hybrid Sampling
Seasonal Allergy Blues: Is Mental Health Worse on High Pollen Days?
This project aims to evaluate the impact of local environmental conditions – seasonal pollen – on mental health and death by suicide in the United States and identify contributing factors which would be sensitive to policy intervention.
Genotyping the Understanding America Study to generate novel opportunities for research on cognitive functioning and dementia
This project seeks to gather genotype data from 12,000 participants in the Understanding America Study panel to develop polygenic scores. These scores will be utilized in social-science genetic studies to examine factors influencing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Researchers involved in the project will: Biological samples will be processed and stored at… Continue reading Genotyping the Understanding America Study to generate novel opportunities for research on cognitive functioning and dementia
Prevalence and developmental trajectories of solitary alcohol use in US young adults
Alcohol problems are prevalent in young adulthood, with one in ten young adults meeting criteria for alcohol use disorder (AUD). It is therefore essential to identify and respond to risk factors for alcohol misuse during this developmental period. One underappreciated risk factor for the development of problematic drinking is the social context in which young… Continue reading Prevalence and developmental trajectories of solitary alcohol use in US young adults
A Next Generation Data Infrastructure to Understand Disparities across the Life Course
This project aims to further advance capabilities in the social sciences (broadly defined) to collect data on the daily lives of families and individuals. These data will be more accurate, more granular, and more complete than has been possible to obtain in traditional survey-based research until now. The context for this is the Understanding America… Continue reading A Next Generation Data Infrastructure to Understand Disparities across the Life Course
Exposure to violence and maternal health
The number of women and children living in close proximity to armed conflict and/or community-based violence has increased globally and in the United States in recent decades. Violence is known to disrupt health service delivery and individuals ability to utilize certain health services, including antenatal care and facility delivery. These disruptions likely contribute to poor… Continue reading Exposure to violence and maternal health
Childhood adversity, DNA methylation, and risk for depression: A longitudinal study of protective factors and sensitive periods in development
Little is known about the extent to which the biological embedding of promotive and protective factors pre-loads a capacity for resilience across the life course. If researchers better understood how promotive and protective factors operate biologically we could better determine what causes depression, which children are most at risk, and perhaps most critically, the optimal… Continue reading Childhood adversity, DNA methylation, and risk for depression: A longitudinal study of protective factors and sensitive periods in development
UAS-CLEAR: A new nationally representative longitudinal study of caregiving experiences and well-being across the lifecourse
Family caregivers are essential to the nations well-being and economy yet little information exists regarding the daily lives of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) and non-ADRD caregivers across the diverse social partners who provide care. The present study develops and administers new survey instruments in the Understanding America Study (UAS) (https://uasdata.usc.edu/index.php) to identify caregivers… Continue reading UAS-CLEAR: A new nationally representative longitudinal study of caregiving experiences and well-being across the lifecourse
Breakthroughs in science: The role of funding approaches and investment balance across Stokes’ quadrants
This project examines whether and how different models for funding and organizing research may relate to the disruptiveness of science. We pay special attention to an innovative model introduced by DARPA, as described by Dugan and Kaigham in 2013 and 2022, which is built on three key principles: