Advanced Research Training in Non-Biological Influences on Health

The primary goals of this program are to expand the national capacity of scientific professionals—particularly in nursing and related fields—to conduct rigorous research examining behavioral, environmental, and structural factors (i.e. barriers to schools, housing, transportation, employment) associated with health variations across populations and aligns with the NIH’s mission to support innovative training approaches that build the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research workforce. This course aims to strengthen the methodological expertise of investigators analyzing the interaction of non-biological influences on health—such as environmental stressors, resource availability, occupational exposure, and community-level variables. Building upon a four-year initiative at Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, which emphasized the role of contextual (social, cultural, economic, policies--i.e. healthcare, health insurance, and workplace) factors in health across its curriculum, this program will offer a structured, mentored training experience. Early-career faculty will be supported in their transition to independent research careers, while mid-career faculty will be equipped to expand their existing research programs through new approaches and collaborations. Emory University offers a robust infrastructure for this training program, with ongoing federally funded research in public health, behavioral science, chronic disease, and aging. Participants will benefit from access to Emory’s Center for Data Science and the Office for Nursing Research, which facilitate exposure to cutting-edge methodologies and provide critical support for grant development and project execution.