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Featuring: Pamela Herd, Principal Investigator, Wisconsin Longitudinal Study; Professor of Public Affairs and Sociology, UW-Madison
Date: February 24, 2015
Time: 12:30 – 2 p.m.
Location: Fluno Center, Dining Room, 601 University Avenue, Madison, WI
Herd is the principal investigator on the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, which has been tracking one in three Wisconsin high school graduates — and a sibling — from the Class of 1957. The study is now nearly 60 years old and has enhanced the understanding of how family of origin, individual ability, and one’s own aspirations predict college-attendance decisions and the quality of work life. In recent years, researchers have learned much about how childhood and midlife experiences help to shape health and well-being in later life. In particular, the study is on the leading edge of integrating biological data — genetic data and data on the gut microbiota — into rich, life-course longitudinal summaries to better understand how our social lives influence our health and well-being.