The PhD in Gerontology

resources for doctoral students

Gerontology Doctoral Dissertations

In Order of Defense

Order First Name Last Name Dissertation Title Defense Date Chair
1 Amy Leventhal Stern A Multidimensional Assessment of Caregiving Outcomes 03/28/1995 Francis G. Caro
2 Carol Reis Starr College in the Later Years: The Effects of Formal Education on the Career Trajectory of Older Women 10/18/1995 Francis G. Caro
3 Barbara Roberge Improved Targeting of Long Term Care Discharges During Hospitalization 03/28/1996 Frank Porell
4 Ajith Silva Specialization of Nursing Home Care and Outcomes: Does Specialization Make A Difference? 04/10/1996 Frank Porell
5 Marianne Matzo LaPorte Registered Nurses’ Attitudes Toward and Practic s of Assisted Suicide and Patint-Requested Euthanasia 04/12/1996 Francis G. Caro
6 Suzanne Herzberg The Nursing Home As A Set of Micro-Environments 11/08/1996 Robert S. Weiss
7 R. Turner Goins Health-Related Quality of Life: Does Rurality Matter? 01/24/1997 Francis G. Caro
8 Cynthia Gruman An Analysis of Case Management Programs and Practices: Correlates of Organizational Strength 04/11/1997 Francis G. Caro
9 Marianne Lyons Delorey The Relative Influence of Work and Family on The Life Purpose of Older Japanese Women 04/16/1997 Scott A. Bass
10 Kamal Hijjazi Factors Contributing to Variations in Medicare Home Health Agency Serivces Utilization Among Aged Medicare Beneficiaries 12/11/1997 Frank Porell
11 Karl Kaffenberger Nursing Home Ownership and Public Policy: An Historical Analysis 03/05/1998 Francis G. Caro
12 Priyanthi Silva Gender Identity Styles of Young, Middle-Aged, and Old Women 04/13/1998 Barbara F. Turner
13 Barbara Kager Factors That Affect Hiring: A Study of Age Discrimination and Hiring 07/15/1998 Francis G. Caro
14 Nirzka Labault Cabeza Implications of Gender and Racial Matching of Patients and Providers Upon Utilization of Health Care Services 01/27/1999 Francis G. Caro
15 Helen Miltiades Filial Expression Across Geographic Boundaries: Asian Indian Immigrants to the United States and Their Non-Immigrant Parents 03/09/1999 Francis G. Caro
16 Kathy Fabiszewski Choices and Tradeoffs in Advanced Alzheimer’s Disease: Balancing Survival, Health, Comfort, and Cost 04/02/1999 Francis G. Caro
17 Terri Salmons Tobin Wandering, Getting Lost and Alzheimer’s Disease 04/13/1999 Francis G. Caro
18 Bei Wu Supplementing Informal Care of Frail Elders with Formal Services: A Comparison of White, Hispanic and Asian Non-Spouse Caregivers 03/22/2000 Francis G. Caro
19 Kirsten Corazzini Community-Residing, Frail Elders: How Case Managers Allocate Scarce Home Care Resources to the Elderly in Massachusetts 04/12/2000 Francis G. Caro
20 Connie Tai The Hospital Choice of Aged Rural Medicare Beneficiaries: The Influence of Patient Attributes, Hospital Attributes, and Spatial Access 04/14/2000 Frank Porell
21 Vanessa Calderon-Rosado Patterns of Exchange of Support between Frail Elders and their Caregivers: A Comparison of European Americans, African Americans, and Puerto Ricans 04/20/2000 Barbara F. Turner
22 Mary Carter Whelan Factors of and Variations in Hospitalization Rates Among Elderly Nursing Home Residents: Searching for Indicators of Appropriate Levels of Acute Care 06/14/2000 Frank Porell
23 Yongjin Son The Effects of Stressful Life Events on Health Service Use and Illness Behavior: Do Moderating Factors Make A Difference? 09/22/2000 Frank Porell
24 Charlotte Fritz Brindley Diffusion of Low-Tech Equipment As A Component of Case Mangers’ Roles 02/23/2001 Francis G. Caro
25 Kathy Stocker The Personal Experience of Coping with Brain Disease: A Neglected Area of Research 03/21/2001 Barbara F. Turner
26 Christopher Rockett Community Supports for Older Adults with Mental Retardation and Their Families 04/11/2001 Francis G. Caro
27 Dena Schulman-Green The Education and Experience of Physicians Providing Psychosocial and Spiritual Aspects of Palliative Care 12/20/2001 Francis G. Caro
28 Jennifer Higgins Analysis of Gambling Activities As A Programmmatic Option in Senior Centers 10/18/2002 Francis G. Caro
29 Margaret Hart Factors Predicting the Type of Assistance Used for Specific Activities of Daily Living by Community Dwelling Elderly 04/03/2003 Frank Porell
30 Antonia (Kathy) Coppin Aging in Developing Countries: Health Status and Disability Among Older Women in Latin America, A Comparison Study 09/16/2003 Frank Porell
31 Dongsoo Lee The Quality of Physician Care and Changes in Health Among Aged Medicare Beneficiaries with Chronic Conditions 09/25/2003 Frank Porell
32 James Bulot Healthcare Information for Older Adults via the World Wide Web 11/13/2003 Jeffrey A. Burr
33 Richard McConaghy Mortality,. Mobility and Refinancing as Factors in HECM Reverse Mortgage Payoffs 12/17/2003 Yung-Ping Chen
34 Laney Bruner-Canhoto Environmental Strategies Among People Growing Older with Multiple Sclerosis: Experiences, Implications and Lessons 02/17/2004 Francis G. Caro
35 Donna Sullivan Aging in the workplace: An ethnography of middle-aged and older waitresses 03/08/2004 Jeffrey A. Burr
36 Puangpen Chanprasert Transitions of Functional Disabilities in the U.S. Elderly with Diabetes Mellitus 05/24/2004 Frank Porell
37 Lona Choi-Allum Meeting the Needs of Relative Caregivers: A Comparison of State Subsidized Guardianship Programs 03/24/2005 Ellen A. Bruce
38 Jennifer Pilcher Warren The Aging Baby Boom Cohort: Predictors of Condom Use of Disease Prevention 05/19/2005 Jan Mutchler
39 May Aydin Jawad Normative Stressors and Psychological Well-Being in the Context of a Post-War Envirnoment 09/09/2005 Jeffrey A. Burr
40 Michelle Washko Volunteering & Aging Adults: An Exploration of Behavioral Determinants & Their Effects on Volunteer Commitment 09/23/2005 Jan Mutchler
41 Lindsey Baker Bridging the Gaps: The Effects of Level of Care, Participation in Multiple Roles, Grandchild Characteristics and Parental Involvement on Depressive Symptoms among Grandparents Raising Grandchildren 04/07/2006 Jan Mutchler
42 Jenai Grigg Murtha Social Predictors of Driving Cessation Among Older Adults: Understanding the Driving Continuum 09/08/2006 Jeffrey A. Burr
43 Regi Robnett The Correlates of Cognitive and Metacognitive Stability and Change in the 1st Waves of the the Health and Retirement Study (1992- 2000) 02/07/2007 Frank Porell
44 Yaw Amoako-Addo Old-Age Pension Benefits in Norway, A Study of Differences in Pension Benefits between Disabled and Non-Disabled Old-Age Pensioners 03/12/2007 Francis G. Caro
45 Jennifer Sullivan Moorhead Understanding Variation in Personal Assistance Use: The Impact of State Attributes Affecting Provision of Home and Community Based Services 03/15/2007 Francis G. Caro
46 Claire Safran Norton Relationship of Home Environment to Residential Transitions Among Elders 08/29/2007 Jan Mutchler
47 Kelly Fitzgerald Evaluation of the Preparedness of Massachusetts Nursing Homes to Respond to Catastrophic Natural or Human Made Disasters 01/23/2008 Francis G. Caro
48 Archana Prakash Tax Work-Off Program: A Unique Approach to Balance the social and financial Needs of Senior Homeowners and Local Governments of Massachusetts 06/12/2008 Francis G. Caro
49 Heather Connors Autonomy vs. Protection:  A Comparison of Geriatric Physicians, Protective Service Case Managers and Elder Law Attorneys. 08/04/2008 Ellen A.  Bruce
50 Kerstin Emerson Gerst Supplemental Security Income Use by Older Immigrants from Latin America: Impact of Federal and State Policy 08/18/2008 Jeffrey A. Burr
51 Kathy Wilson Newly Hired Certified Nursing Assistants: Assimilation Into the Nursing Home Workforce and Organizational Culture 10/16/2008 Francis G. Caro
52 Natalie Leland Wiatrowski The Relationship Between Fall Severity and Residential Adjustment, Functional Status, and Future Falls Among Community Living Older Adults 01/16/2009 Frank Porell
53 Allan Morgan Job Transition, Bridge Work and Their Effects on Health 03/20/2009 Jan Mutchler
54 Larry Cahalin Health Behaviors of Older Persons With and Without Heart Disease 08/24/2009 Francis G. Caro
55 Susan Berger Leisure participation experiences among older adults with low vision 11/23/2009 Jan Mutchler
56 Eilon Caspi Preventing Agitative Behaviors and Encouraging Positive Emotions Among Elders With Memory-Loss Who Live in An Assisted Living Residence 01/06/2010 Francis G. Caro
57 Hsaio-Yin Chung The Effects of Childbearing Patterns on the Timing of Retirement 11/15/2010 Maximiliane Szinovacz
58 Andrea Tull Analysis of Retirement Risk within Massachusetts State Agencies and Use of Post-Retirement Contracting As A Workforce Planning Tool 03/16/2011 Ellen A. Bruce
59 Kimberly Stoeckel Sauder The Role of Home Environments in Residential Adjustment Decision Making in Later Life 09/21/2011 Frank Porell
60 Seungah (Hannah) Lee Disability Status and Living Arrangements among Asian Older Adults in the United States 04/13/2012 Jan Mutchler
61 Kimberly Johnson Volunteering among surviving spouses: The impact of volunteer activity on the health of the recently widowed 08/16/2012 Jan Mutchler
62 Jiyoung Lyu The Impact of Childhood SES on Decline in Cognition among Older Adults 12/13/2013 Jeffrey A. Burr
63 Cathy Wong Gender, Race, and Ethnic Differences in the Effects of Education on Depression in Later Life: The Mediating Roles of Mastery and Stress 01/22/2014 Jeffrey A. Burr
64 Judith Poey The Social Environment, APOE e4, and Dementia: The Social Environment as a Moderating Factor Among Individuals Genetically Predisposed to Develop Dementia 02/28/2014 Jeffrey A. Burr
65 Deborah Gray Patterns of Dissaving Among US Elders 03/21/2014 Ellen A. Bruce
66 Caitlin Coyle The Effects of Loneliness and Social Isolation on Hypertension in Later Life: Including the Risk, Diagnosis and Management of the Chronic Condition 03/28/2014 Jan Mutchler
67 Kristen Porter Resilience in the Face of Adversity: Aging with HIV/AIDS 02/26/2015 Jeffrey A. Burr
68 Tamara Harden Service Utilization Among People With Cognitive Impairment: Does Living Alone Make A Difference? 07/01/2015 Jan Mutchler
69 Lauren Palmer Martin Marital History and Retirement Security: An Empirical Analysis of the Work, Family, and Gender Relationship 11/06/2015 Maximiliane Szinovacz
70 Judith Conahan Negotiation Experiences of Agency
and Independent Home Care Aides
of Chronically Ill Older Adults
12/09/2015 Francis G. Caro
71 Elizabeth Chen Letting Go: The Influence of Clinicians and Proxy Decision-Makers on Preferences for Life-Sustaining Treatments 12/16/2015 Jan Mutchler
72 Kelli Barton The Impact of Social Network and Neighborhood Characteristics on the Driving Status of Older Adults:The Moderating Role of Gender 03/25/2016 Elizabeth Dugan
73 Yao Chi Shih Living Alone and Subsequent Living Arrangement Transitions among Older Americans 04/06/2016 Frank Porell
74 Elizabeth Johns LIFE-COURSE INFORMAL CARE AND RETIREMENT PREPARATION:
IS THERE A MEASURABLE CARE PENALTY?
04/08/2016 Jan Mutchler
75 Hyo Jung Lee Social Relationships and
All-Cause Mortality in Late Life
07/18/2016 Jeffrey A. Burr
76 Emily Gadbois Understanding How State Policy
Influences Driving Status in Older Adults
11/07/2016 Elizabeth Dugan
77 Lien Quach Social Determinants of Falls: The Role of
Social Support and Depression among Community-Dwelling Older Adults
11/09/2016 Jeffrey A. Burr
78 Emma Quach Multiple Roles in Later Years:
Family-Work Enhancement and Conflict and Their Effects on Psychological Well-Being
12/07/2016 Kathrin Boerner
79 Chae Man Jay Lee Understanding the Role of Driver, Vehicle, Environment, and Policy Factors in Crash Injury Severity Among Older Adults in the United States 03/16/2017 Elizabeth Dugan
80 Kristen Anderson Cognition and Driving Status in Older Adults 03/14/2017 Elizabeth Dugan
81 Mai See Yang The Impacts of Life Events on Depression in Later Life in Older Hmong Immigrants 03/27/2017 Jan Mutchler
82 Abigail Butt Geographic Mobility and Place Attachment
in Later Life
03/31/2017 Jeffrey A. Burr
83 Ping Xu Intergenerational Financial Exchange and Cognitive Well-being among Older Adults in China 04/13/2017 Jeffrey A. Burr
84 Bruce Haimowitz Trajectories of Retirement in Later Life: a group-Based Modeling Approach 06/16/2017 Jeffrey A. Burr
85 Shuangshuang Wang Grandchild Care and Marital Quality in Later Life 03/19/2018 Jan Mutchler
86 Jane Tavares Social Relationships and Obesity in Later Life 04/03/2018 Jeffrey A. Burr
87 Ian Livingstone Examining the Effects of Professional
Non-Nursing Staffing on Quality of Care
in Nursing Homes
04/06/2018 Jennifer Hefele
88 Lorilei Richardson Driving and Expectation to Age in Place for Older Adults Along the Urbanicity Continuum 11/30/2018 Jan Mutchler
89 Patricia Oh Developing Age-Friendly Communities:
Evidence From Multiple Case Studies
02/22/2019 Jeffrey A. Burr
90 SaeHwang Han Health Consequences of Retirement
among Married Couples
04/19/2019 Jeffrey A. Burr
91 Brittany Gaines The Role of the Environmental
Context in Advance Care Planning
among Older Adults
08/20/2019 Kathrin Boerner
92 Bon Kim Sense of Control and Frailty among Older Adults 01/31/2020 Elizabeth Dugan
93 Andrea Daddato The Influence of Medicare Insurance Type – Traditional Fee-for-Service v. Medicare Advantage- on Rehospitalizations for Patients with Heart Failure in Skilled Nursing Facilities 03/31/2020 Edward Miller
94 Danielle Waldron Aging with Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Analysis of Physical Activity Engagment 03/31/2020 Elizabeth Dugan
95 Hayley Gleason The Effect of Job Demands on Job Satisfaction and Intent to Stay Among Massachusetts Home Health and Supportive Home Care Aides 03/31/2020 Edward Miller
96 Yijung Kim Family Ties and Subjective Aging in Later Life 04/02/2020 Kathrin Boerner
97 Haowei Wang Intergenerational Relationships and Sleep in Aging Families 04/03/2020 Kyungmin Kim
98 Frances Hawes Occupational stress and job satisfaction of long term care workers: The impact of the social working environment. 07/15/2020 Pamela Nadash
99 Xiao (Joyce) Wang Care Specialization and Financial Performance in Urban Nursing Homes 01/11/2021 Jeffrey Burr
100 Krystal Kittle Healthcare of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Middle-Aged and Older Adults: The Role of Minority Stress, Sociodemographic Characteristics and Social Resources 3/19/2021 Kathrin Boerner

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