Aging and the Social Brain: The Role of Social Networks in Alzheimer’s Disease – Dr. Brea Perry

Posted: 2/13/2025 (CSDE Seminar Series)

When: Friday, Feb 21, 2025 (12:30-1:30PM)

Where: 360 Parrington Hall and on Zoom (register here)

1-on-1 meetings: 223 Raitt Hall (sign up here)

We are looking forward to hosting Brea Perry from Indiana University on Friday, Feb. 21 in Parrington Hall 360 and on Zoom. This seminar is co-sponsored by the Population Health Initiative. In addition, there are opportunities to meet 1-1 with Dr. Perry throughout the day. Sign up here!

Research suggests social connectedness reduces dementia risk and helps older adults with neuropathology maintain cognitive functionality and quality of life. However, little is known about the specific underlying social and biological mechanisms. This presentation provides an overview of potential pathways through social bridging (i.e., cognitive enrichment through expansive social networks) and social bonding (i.e., neuroendocrine benefits of integration in cohesive social networks). Results from a cohort study of older adults that combines social network methodology with data on general and social cognitive function and neuroimaging biomarkers are presented. These findings provide insight into specific etiological mechanisms and have important implications for cognitive health disparities that can be leveraged to inform policies and programs that support brain health and cognitive function in older adults.

Dr. Brea Perry is the Allen D. and Polly S. Grimshaw Professor in the Department of Sociology, Associate Director of the Irsay Institute for Sociomedical Sciences Research, and the Vice Provost and Associate Vice President for Research at Indiana University. Her research investigates the intersecting influence of social networks, biomarkers, social psychology, and social inequality in health and illness. Brea’s work often focuses on psychological and brain diseases, including neurological disorders common in aging, mental illness, and substance use disorders. Brea has received over $19M in funding from multiple National Institutes of Health, including NIA, NIDA, NIDCR, and NCRR, as well as the National Science Foundation, Russell Sage Foundation, and other charitable foundations. She has served as Chair of the American Sociological Association’s Section on Medical Sociology, Series Editor of Advances in Medical Sociology, and Associate Editor of Alzheimer’s & Dementia. She was elected to the Sociological Research Association in 2021 and was a National Academy of Medicine Emerging Leaders in Health and Medicine Scholar from 2019-2022.