Although social relationships are an important part of aging, cognitive challenges can lead older adults to withdraw from such activities, an event that has been aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
After receiving a $675,000 grant from The National Institute of Aging, National Institutes of Health, FAU scientists from the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science and Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing will conduct a study with the goal of “[identifying] systemic factors that lead to engagement or retreat from social interactions in older adults.”
The study, which is titled “The Mathematics of Relatedness: Social Affordances in Behavioral and Cognitive Aging”, aims to find ways to keep older adults engaged in society by finding the “right choice of social partners and activities”.
The study will be conducted by researchers from a variety of FAU programs, and could have an important impact on the increasing population of older adults.
Read the full FAU press release here.