Graphic design of a person's head made of puzzle pieces.
New funding helps USC Dornsife researchers gain new insights into causes and effects of cognitive decline among American’s. (Composite: Letty Avila. Image source: iStock.)

$59 million boost enhances USC Dornsife’s Understanding America Study and nationwide research

National Institute on Aging grants increase study participant diversity, add new data sources and fund new research on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.
ByDarrin S. Joy

To quickly and accurately assess the American public’s attitudes on a wide range of topics — including health, work, politics and religion — researchers nationwide turn to the Understanding America Study (UAS).

With $59 million in new grants, this prized research tool — administered by the Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR) at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences — will soon provide even more robust data to researchers.

The bulk of the funding, $42 million from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), will support an expansion of the UAS. This includes significantly increasing the number of participants, with a focus on specific racial and ethnic groups, and integrating data from new sources such as wearable technologies.

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