Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care BDP Student Iman Ahmed conducted research with The Benner Lab, where she helped conduct visits with study participants by collecting health measurements to identify predictors of stress.
"My connecting experience helped me to gain familiarity with the research process by working in a lab, which will help me during medical school and throughout my future career.”
What was the name of the lab and/or title of the research project?
The Benner Lab - Adolescent Loneliness and Health Compromising Behaviors.
How did you find this research assistantship?
As a Human Development and Family Sciences major, I was able to choose between completing a research practicum or a field practicum to satisfy my degree requirements. I chose to pursue a research practicum and decided to apply to the Benner Lab after reading about Dr. Benner’s work, which investigates how social contexts influence experiences of marginalization and discrimination, school transitions, and developmental outcomes during adolescence.
What kind of work did you do as a research assistant and what did you learn through this experience?
As a research assistant, I helped conduct visits with study participants, collecting health measurements, blood samples, and saliva samples to identify predictors of stress. I also helped transcribe and code participant interviews, as well as helped with participant recruitment.
What was the most rewarding aspect of your Connecting Experience?
The most rewarding part of my connecting experience was being able to conduct my own research project using data from Dr. Benner’s lab. During my senior year, I worked on a research project examining the links between adolescent loneliness and patterns of health-compromising behaviors such as restrictive dieting, substance use, and sleep disturbances. I was able to write an honors thesis about my project and present my research at the School of Human Ecology Honors Symposium.
In what ways has this Connecting Experience shaped your plans for the future?
My connecting experience helped me to gain familiarity with the research process by working in a lab, which will help me during medical school and throughout my future career. I was able to learn about frameworks that help explain chronic disease such as life course theory. My connecting experience helped spark an interest in adolescent health and I hope to continue working on my project after graduation.
Please discuss the relationship that you had with your faculty mentor(s), and how they helped you during this Connecting Experience.
Dr. Benner helped me during every step of the research process. She helped me develop a year-long timeline for my project and provided me feedback with each section of my thesis paper. During the data analysis stage, she taught me how to use MPlus to analyze data, helping me create APA-style tables. She was incredibly patient and supportive throughout the entire process!