Alliance of Researchers in Aging (ARIA)
Alliance of Researchers in Aging
Texas State University
The Alliance of Researchers in Aging (ARIA) supports networking opportunities and interdisciplinary research in aging, including research on cognition, cognitive decline and dementia, mental health, care-giving, and physical, social, and spiritual well-being.
ARIA is especially committed to research aimed at enhancing well-being in the later stages of the life course and applying research to help older adults in central Texas and beyond through educational opportunities and partnerships with community stakeholders.
News
Dr. Nadim Adi (Interior Design) gave a TEDx Texas State University talk, How we can prepare our buildings for an aging population, on February 24, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbeqhdhtUEg
Dr. Seoyoun Kim (Sociology) was awarded an NIH R01 award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for the project, Volunteering, Polygenic Risk, and Cardiovascular biomarkers in Multiple Ancestry Groups. This research was recently featured in the Austin-American Statesman:
https://www.statesman.com/story/news/healthcare/2024/04/10/is-volunteering-good-for-you-health-texas-state-research-study-heart-disease/73097865007/
Dr. Nadim Adi (Interior Design), Dr. Mais Aljunaidy (Psychology), and Dr. Chris Johnson (Sociology) submitted a proposal to the Annual Alzheimer's Association Pitch Competition and their proposal was selected as one of five finalists out of 35 submissions from 10 different countries to present an idea to improve the life quality of people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease in March 2024 in Chicago, IL.
Dr. Keya Sen (Health Administration) is the faculty advisor for the Texas State Student Chapter of the American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA), who won a Chapter Achievement Award for their project Reducing Social Isolation: A community-based, intergenerational, multicultural program.
Dr. Carmen Westerberg’s (Psychology) research on sleep in individuals with Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory was recently featured on 60 Minutes Australia, Canada TV’s W5 news program, and in an article for the Times of London:
60 Minutes Australia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb0hP_Rrjbg
W5 News article: https://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/why-18-year-old-canadian-emily-nash-is-sharing-her-unique-brain-with-science-1.6818765
W5 Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MlFheM5Tf8
Times of London: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/canadian-18-to-help-unlock-secrets-of-her-rare-super-memory-0sxfbb8dc
Dr. Joe Kotarba (Sociology) was selected to give a keynote talk at the European Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction Annual Meeting, Population Mobility and the Everyday Dynamics of Frontier Medicine, on June 5, 2024, in Piza, Italy.
Dr. Mais Aljunaidy's (Psychology) recent research on artificial intelligence in art therapy was featured on Psychreg News. https://www.psychreg.org/ai-holds-promise-enhancing-art-therapy-requires-further-refinement-human-oversight/
ARIA members presented a poster, Alliance of Researchers in Aging, at the Health Scholars Showcase sponsored by the Translational Health Research Center at Texas State University on March 1, 2024. Poster authors included Dr. Kyong Hee Chee (Sociology), Rebecca Deason (Psychology), Nadim Adi (Interior Design), and Carmen Westerberg (Psychology).
Upcoming Events
October 31, 2024
San Marcos Senior Citizens Expo
San Marcos Community Center
ARIA will host a booth with information on current research and how to participate.
September 20, 2024
1:00 pm, The Price Center, 222 W. San Antonio St., San Marcos, TX 78666
Aging Well: Strategies for Dementia Prevention and Compassionate Care
Workshop in Partnership with the Price Center Intergenerational Community Center
Presenters: Dr. Chris Johnson (Sociology), Dr. Seoyoun Kim (Sociology), Dr. Xi Pan (Sociology), Anna Broome (The Price Center)
September 13, 2024
University Lecturer Series hosted by ARIA
11:00 am, Alkek 250
Characteristics and Mechanisms of SuperAging
Dr. Emily Rogalski, Professor of Neurology, University of Chicago
Co-Sponsors: Departments of Psychology, Sociology, Health and Human Performance, Philosophy, Political Science, Anthropology, Communication Disorders, History, English, and the Center for Diversity and Gender Studies
Click here for parking details
July 31, 2024
ARIA members will be presenting a symposium, Research in Aging: Balance, Detecting Falls, and Interior Design, at the Aging in Texas Conference, in Austin, TX.
Presenters include: Dr. Denise Gobert (Physical Therapy), Dr. Anne Ngu (Computer Science), Dr. Nadim Adi (Interior Design), Dr. Mais Aljundaidy (Psychology) and Dr. Carmen Westerberg (Psychology).
Recent Events
May 21, 2024
TXST@KT Speaker Series
Kissing Tree Active Adult Community, San Marcos, TX
Aging, Memory, and Sleep
Dr. Carmen Westerberg (Psychology)
May 8, 2024
Golden Community Partners, Lockhart, TX
Memory and Aging
Dr. Rebecca Deason (Psychology)
Participate in Research
If you are an adult over age 55 and would be interested in participating in research conducted by members of the Alliance of Researchers in Aging at Texas State, please sign up by clicking on the following link: https://txstate.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3DvStHDyYkNt02i
Community Partners
Area Agency on Aging of the Capital Area (AAACAP) serves older adults, people with disabilities and their caregivers with a variety of services and supports throughout the region.
Capital City Village is Austin's virtual community of seniors committed to aging in place - living in our own homes and communities comfortably - while maintaining healthy and active lifestyles.
Kissing Tree - Active Adult retirement community in San Marcos, TX
The Price Center serves as a gathering place for stimulating cultural, social and intellectual opportunities for proposed inter-generational encounters, where the life experiences of our senior generation may be shared with the aspirations of those on their own life journey.
Successfully Aging and Living in San Antonio - Provider of services to support older adults in San Antonio, TX
