A Longevity Revolution

Becca Levy is Associate Professor of Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases) and of Psychology at the Yale School of Public Health. Professor Levy's research explores psychosocial influences on aging: how psychological factors, particularly older individuals' perceptions of aging, affect cognition and health in old age.

Levy's research digs well below older people's emotional response to negative or positive images to how those images affect their health and functioning. In a 2002 study of attitudes about aging in 660 people over age 50 in Oxford, Ohio, she found that those who viewed aging as a positive experience lived and average of 7.5 years longer. This means that a positive image had a greater impact than not smoking or maintaining a healthy weight. (Levy is quick to point out that factors such as exercise and good nutrition are still significant contributors to longevity.)

Levy is a recipient of the Springer Award for Early Career Achievement in Adult Development and Aging of the American Psychological Association and the Margret M. Baltes Award for Early Career Contributions in Behavioral and Social Gerontology, Gerontological Society of America

The lecture is at 3:30 P.M. on Tuesday, March 6, 2012, in Room 252 of the Biomedical Research Building (BRB II/III), followed by a reception and refreshments at 4:30 P.M.