Eric S. Kim, Ph.D. Email & Phone Number

Dr. Kim's program of research aims to identify, understand, and intervene upon the dimensions of psychological well-being (sense of purpose in life, optimism) and social connection that reduce the risk of age-related conditions. Around these topics, he has given invited lectures at Universities (Harvard, MIT, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia Univeresity), corporations (UnitedHealth Care, IDEO, AARP, Samsung), and he’s also been invited to speak at and join the working groups of national- and international-think-tanks (United Nations, OECD, U.S. Surgeon Generals Office, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, U.S. Department of Defense, National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Sciences). He’s also been recognized as one of Forbe’s 30 Under 30 in Healthcare, the American Psychological Association Early Career Achievement Award (Division 20 (Aging) & Division 38 (Health Psych)), and an Association for Psychological Science (APS) Rising Star. His insights have been featured in the: NY Times, Atlantic, BBC News, NPR, Washington Post. His research has been cited by policy statements/guidelines formulated by the: United Nations, National Academy of Sciences, American Heart Association, and the U.S. Surgeon General's Office.Population aging is one of the most important social trends of the 21st century. In both Canada and the U.S., the # of adults aged ≥65 is projected to increase by 45%-55% in the next 15 years. Thus, it is imperative to develop a science that informs a more comprehensive approach to healthy aging. Dr. Kim’s overarching goal is to substantially help improve the psychological well-being, social well-being, and physical health of our rapidly growing population. In pursuit of this goal, his program of research revolves around 4 interwoven questions. He studies: 1) Several dimensions of psychological well-being (sense of purpose in life, optimism) and social connection, and how they relate to health outcomes. 2) The behavioral, biological, and neural mechanisms underlying these associations. 3) How an individual’s psychological and social well-being interacts with the surrounding environment to influence behavioral and physical health outcomes; for example, at the meso-level (dyadic dynamics in couples, neighborhood contexts, altruism/volunteering) and the macro-level (social cohesion, social and racial disparities). 4) And he partners with non-profit/healthcare companies to conduct translational research that test scalable interventions.

Listed skills include Research, Statistics, Psychology, Data Analysis, and 12 others.