Associate Professor, Public Administration and International Affairs, Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs
Senior Research Associate, Center for Policy Research
Faculty Affiliate, Aging Studies Institute
Faculty Affiliate, Center for Aging and Policy Studies
CAPS Biography:
My research focuses on understanding the socioeconomic factors affecting health and suicide and uncovering the most effective policies to prevent suicide deaths. Suicide affects every age group, but older adults tend to have the highest suicide rates in many countries, including the United States. My wide-ranging research on this topic aligns with the activities of the Center for Aging and Policy Studies (CAPS).
One line of this work, which aligns with the CAPS cross-cutting theme of policy, has investigated the effectiveness of suicide prevention policies, including the introduction of national suicide prevention strategies. These studies have been widely cited, including by publications from the World Health Organization. In these papers, I have provided guidance for policymakers and suicide prevention practitioners worldwide. In addition, I have published several influential papers in the area of media and suicide that help us understand how and why media reporting of suicides, both in traditional (newspaper and TV) and social media, triggers subsequent suicide deaths in the population.
More recently, my work has investigated the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide, mental health outcomes, loneliness, and other health behaviors, which is aligned with the CAPS signature theme of health and well-being. During the pandemic, I collaborated with top scholars in the field as an active member of an international collaboration group (International COVID-19 Suicide Prevention Research Collaboration), and we have published papers on the trend of suicide deaths during the early phase of the pandemic, as well as several commentaries that urged public health officials and policymakers to strengthen their suicide prevention efforts. I have made more than 200 media appearances in international media outlets as an expert, in addition to giving talks at events and symposiums in various countries since the outbreak of the pandemic.
My latest ongoing work investigates whether caregiving activities increase suicide risk among older adults, and what factors, including the level of social disconnectedness, can heighten or mitigate the risk, which aligns well with the CAPS signature theme of family and intergenerational supports.
