Louise is a field-leading expert on loneliness and social isolation and their associations with health during aging. At NORC, she leads research and analyses centered on identification of factors that increase risk for loneliness and individual and environmental sources of changes in loneliness. Her publications include more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters.
Louise acts as a co-investigator on the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), a National Institute on Aging funded panel study of health and social factors among older adults in the United States. Additionally, she is the Principal Investigator of NSHAP’s COVID-19 supplemental study, which ran from 2020 to 2021. She also consults on NIA-funded NSHAP-related projects that explore the role of social factors in the diabetes disease course and another that extends NSHAP into a nationally representative sample of LGBT older adults.
Louise is a member of the Gerontological Society of America and the American Society on Aging. She is an international speaker and served as an expert witness for the solitary confinement case, Ashker v. Governor of California, 2015. Louise is a founding member of the International Loneliness and Isolation Research Network (ILINK), and a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee for the national Foundation for Social Connection.
Quick Links
Education
PhD
The Ohio State University
MA
The Ohio State University
BA
Bethel College, KS
Project Contributions
Publications
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WATCH: Jim Neumeister on Equity-Focused Education Research
August 28, 2024
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Live Crime Tracker Shows Major Crime Declines in First Half of 2024 with Local Variability
Press Release | August 26, 2024
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City-Funded Preschool Helps Alleviate Shortage, Improves Child & Family Outcomes
NORC Article | August 22, 2024
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U.S. History Teachers Report Little Outside Interference Despite Political Polarization
NORC Article | August 19, 2024
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“Evaluation of Pennsylvania Community Violence Intervention Programs: PCCD VIP Grants Survey Report”
Project Report | August 15, 2024
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“Evaluation of Pennsylvania Community Violence Intervention Programs - PCCD VIP Grants Survey Report: Executive Summary”
Project Report | August 15, 2024
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NORC Evaluation Finds City-Funded Preschool Helps Alleviate Shortage, Improves Child & Family Outcomes
Press Release | August 12, 2024
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WATCH: Susan Paddock on AI & Equity
August 7, 2024