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Healthy Communities Research Institute

Healthy Communities Research Institute
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A student wears a Â鶹ÊÓƵ mask during the COVID-19 pandemic

Two professors have conducted much-needed research on face coverings that use alternative textiles to protect the public from COVID-19 and how to keep those masks virus-free.

Division of Research & Economic Development
Photo of the necks of beer bottles lined up at an angle

While it's no secret that many college students drink alcohol, how COVID-19 affected these behaviors and patterns is the focus of recent research published in the journal Addictive Behaviors by the collaboration of William Lechner from the Department of Psychological Sciences and Deric Kenne from the College of Public Health. The pair sought to study the effects that a major stressor such as the pandemic could have on addictive behaviors and how vulnerabilities such as anxiety and depression played a part in the coping process of college students. 

Division of Research & Economic Development
Women bored on her phone looking out the window.

It would not be surprising if you have a social media app open right now; however, you may not be getting the enjoyment out of it that you think you are. In a recent publication in Computers in Human Behavior, two Â鶹ÊÓƵ professors examined the relationship between social media usage and boredom. Students may be surprised by the results and parents might be excited by them.

Division of Research & Economic Development
Man wearing a virtual reality headset

Two Â鶹ÊÓƵ sociology researchers are moving toward gaining insight into how people’s brains react in a variety of threatening situations using innovative virtual reality (VR) technology funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Army. Josh Pollock and William Kalkhoff, both in the Department of Sociology & Criminology, are leading the research projects, which will benefit the Army, Â鶹ÊÓƵ students and others.

Healthy Communities Research Institute
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