Latest News from Social and Behavioral Sciences

Gay and lesbian adults over age 65 are nearly 28 times more likely than heterosexual peers to engage in polysubstance use, a Yale team finds in a new study published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports.

Proactive action is needed to make cities more resilient to climate change and capable of protecting community health, according to a new report released today (Sept. 26) by the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH), the Resilient Cities Network, and The Rockefeller Foundation.

Two Yale School of Public Health faculty members – Dr. Ijeoma Opara, PhD, associate professor of public health; and Dr. Trace Kershaw, PhD, department chair and Susan Dwight Bliss Professor of Public Health – are partnering with faculty from two historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as part of a new research grant program instituted in the spring by Yale University.

At a summit on September 18, 2024, leaders from across Yale School of Medicine will present strategies for improving health equity that they developed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pregnant women who participated in a group prenatal care intervention focused on healthy lifestyle choices and weight management significantly reduced their risk of excess pregnancy weight gain and gestational diabetes, according to a new study led by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health, Brown University, and the Lyndon B. Johnson Tropical Medical Center in American Samoa.

Twenty-three teens from New Jersey participated in the Yale Summer Youth Research Program in July and August, which is aimed at inspiring future leaders in public health, data science, and substance use prevention. The program was led by Dr. Ijeoma Opara, PhD, MSW, MPH, associate professor of public health (social and behavioral sciences) and director of the Substance Abuse and Sexual Health (SASH) Lab at Yale.

Plenty of jokes have been made about aging. But it can also have some negative implications, says Becca Levy, a professor and researcher at Yale School of Public Health, who studies the psychology of aging.

This Student Spotlight focuses on Shreya Jadhav, MPH '25 (Social and Behavioral Sciences), a graduate research assistant in the Substance Abuse and Sexual Health (SASH) Lab at YSPH.

YSPH Assistant Professor Chelsey R. Carter discusses how you can tell if you are experiencing medical gaslighting and what you can do about it.