Research
UNCW, the state’s coastal university, is dedicated to learning through the integration of teaching and mentoring with research and service. UNCW is unique in its dedication to combining a commitment to excellence in teaching with research opportunities for student involvement.
Research and Scholarship are fundamental to the advancement of health and human services. Moreover, the health and human services fields demand that professionals maintain a current knowledge base in order to meet human needs and improve the quality of life of individuals, families, and communities through prevention, promotion, maintenance, and restoration of physical, mental, and social well-being.
Faculty members in the College of Health and Human Services are committed to the transdisciplinary model of research where we work with students and our community partners to discover and apply scientific knowledge that serve the public and produces tangible benefits to human benefits to human benefits in all their diversity.
Currently faculty and students are involved in research projects centered on vulnerable populations including child and family health promotion, health risk behavior change, management of chronic diseases, gerontology, nursing education, simulation, clinical research, social work education and intervention with a specific focus on strengths-based practice,
Specific topics of Research and Scholarship currently in progress within CHHS:
Children, Adolescents, and Family Health
- Children with Special Health Care Needs (Camp Special Time)
- Effects of Family Strengthening Program on Child Health Outcomes
- Family care givers (children and spouses with chronic diseases)
- Breast Feeding and Lactation
Chronic Disease Management
- Human Papilloma virus (HPV) in Adolescents
- HIV/AIDS Prevention and Management
- Stroke Prevention
- Diabetes Type II
- Hypertension Management
- Health Literacy
Health Risk Behavior Change
- Obesity Prevention
- Sexual Risk Taking –Adolescents, women
- Intimate Partner Violence –Migrant Farmers
- Education to address health disparities
Mental Health
- Anxiety and Depression (Stroke, Hypertension, CVD, HIV/AIDS, Perinatal Depression)
- Stress and Coping (Interpersonal Violence, military nursing roles)
- Spiritual Health (Hypertension Management)
Health Policy
- Gerontological health
- Heath care
- Prevention and well-being
Vulnerable Populations
- African American teens and families
- Indigenous communities
- Active duty military and veterans
- Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and trans gender individuals, couples, and families
- Older adults
- Men receiving services
Health Promotion
- Policy development and evaluation
- Curbing substance use and abuse
- Injury and disease prevention
- Strategies to lessen obesity and cardiovascular disease
- Strategies to lessen HIV/AIDS
- Tobacco cessation
- Nutrition
- Fitness and wellness promotion across the lifespan
- Evidence-based health behavior changes
Measurement and Instrumentation Creation and Validation
- Measures of physical performance
- Reliability and validity of health measurement / assessment
Work site Wellness
- Risk reduction in first responders
- Performance improvement in work site settings
Global Perspectives
- Travel motivations
- Environmental issues
- International women's health issues
Nursing Education
- Camp BONES-developing nursing and health professionals
- Technology and simulation in nursing education
- Curricula design and evaluation
Best Practices in Health Education, Health Care Advocacy, and Clinical Practice
- Health educational strategies and interventions
- Empowering populations to navigate the health care system (Vietnam veterans, PTSD)
- Evaluating the impact of technology on educational outcomes in health
- Community health applications
Social Work Education
- Interdisciplinary training of social workers and nurses
- Assessing student cultural competence
- Curricula design and evaluation
- Clinical reasoning in education and clinical practice
Person-Centered Practice for Special Populations
- Persons with dementia
- K-12 school based interventions for children with physical & cognitive disabilities
- Accessible recreation & leisure activities for adults with physical disabilities
Social Work Direct Practice
- Case management
- Narrative therapy
- Solution-focused interventions
- Interventions addressing Post-Traumatic Syndrome and Grief and Loss
Social Work Macro Practice
- Nonprofit program evaluation
- Community planning
- Organizational Policy change processes
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