The UQ Ageing Mind Initiative is very pleased to present, as part of October's Senior's Month Activities, a very special and timely FREE ZOOM LECTURE by Professor Catherine Haslam in the School of Psychology on the power of social connections for health.
SUMMARY:
The science shows that social connectedness is a powerful predictor of health and well-being outcomes. Among the most striking findings for older adults is evidence that those who are more socially connected are less vulnerable to cognitive decline and that particular social relationships — those with groups of others (including our community, voluntary and family groups) — are especially protective of brain health. In this presentation I will talk about these and other data speaking to the power of social group connections and ways we can best harness these connections to support health and well-being as we age.
OUR SPEAKER: Catherine Haslam is Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Queensland and the Director of SIGNify that aims to translate the research of the Social Identity Groups Network to practice. She is a clinical academic whose work focuses on the social and cognitive impacts of identity-changing life transitions (associated with trauma, illness and recovery, retirement, aging) and interventions that can be used to manage these. In particular, her research on social connectedness, health and well-being has contributed to a body of work on the social cure that has informed a suite of identity building social group interventions to tackle loneliness.
