Mentor: Dr. Gillian Einstein
Professor
Project Description
This is a project to understand the effects of aging, immigration, and stigma on the cognitive health on older women from the Horn of Africa. We have qualitative interviews (ongoing as well), imaging, neuropsych tests, pressure-touch thresholds, and hair samples to put together the cognitive experience of aging in Canada. All data acquisition are ongoing. The SROP student will take a lead role in analyzing the component in which they are most interested and put together multiple ‘case studies’ across the data domains to understand how all of these factors play a role in cognitive aging in this population.
Mentorship Statement
One of the most exciting things about science and lab work is that you are making knowledge and working in a team to do so. In order to facilitate this effort, everyone in the lab is a colleague – some colleagues know more than others, but we are all learning together and working toward the same goals. Within this context, I like to help students find their strengths and help them work from those strengths to build yet more. To help foster this development, I meet with students regularly and we have weekly lab meetings in which we discuss our research successes, challenges, what we’re pondering, and new research in the field. What will you take with you at the end of the summer?: I hope, an expanded love of science, an appreciation for teamwork, and some understanding of multiple intersecting factors that shape cognition as we age.