Arizona State University College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Research Opportunities in the
Arizona Health and Aging Lab


The Arizona Health and Aging Lab (AHA) is a collaborative lab conducting on-going studies examining factors that contribute to resilience in aging, including the relation between stress and biological risk factors for disease. The lab includes work conducted by the Resilience Solutions Group and the Arthritis Research Group. The AHA Lab currently has two active large scale longitudinal projects: AS U Live and GIFT.

Both projects provide excellent opportunities for undergraduates interested in:

Working directly with a diverse community sample

Gaining clinical experience (patient contact hours)

Conducting physiological assessments including electrophysiological data collection

Conducting controlled lab experiments in health psychology

Interacting one-on-one with participants

Gaining experience relevant to Clinical or Health Psychology Ph.D.

Gaining experience relevant to Medical degrees

AS U Live GIFT
This is a 5-year study designed to explore resilience among adults in mid-life (40 to 65 years old). The primary aim of this study is to better understand the variables that contribute to maintaining good physical and emotional health throughout life and to learn more about "community resilience," or potential health advantages for individuals residing in community contexts with certain beneficial attributes. Participants will be randomly selected from 40 census tracts in the Phoenix Metro area selected to ensure a representative sample of Hispanic residents.
This 5-year study evaluates the efficacy of a psychological treatment designed to assist chronic pain patients with Fibromyalgia to learn new, more effective methods of emotion regulation as well as pain management. Participants will be patients with a confirmed diagnosis of Fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition.
AS U Live Research Team: Alex Zautra, John Hall (School of Public Affairs), Mary Davis, Linda Luecken, Kathy Lemery, Felipe Castro, Leona Aiken, John Reich, Pamela Hunter (Institute for Social Science Research)
GIFT Research Team: Mary Davis, Alex Zautra
Click here for more information about undergraduate research opportunities on the AS U Live project
Click here for more information about undergraduate research opportunities on the GIFT project