How daily neighborhood stress and surroundings affect memory and dementia risk in older adults
Assessing Urban-Rural Environmental Stress Inequities in ADRD through Ecological Momentary Assessment
This project uses a phone app and a smartwatch to track daily stress, location, and activity in older adults with mild cognitive impairment living in urban and rural Indiana.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Trustees of Indiana University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Bloomington, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11136457 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, researchers will search medical records to find older adults at higher risk and give you a brief memory test to confirm mild cognitive impairment. You will wear a smartwatch and use the STRIVE app for two weeks to report short, in-the-moment stress entries, take optional photos, and allow GPS and activity data to be collected. The team will link your app reports, smartwatch data, and health records to study how neighborhood and daily stressors relate to memory problems and dementia risk across urban and rural communities. Findings are intended to highlight environmental sources of stress that may contribute to dementia disparities and inform local supports.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults aged 65 or older in Indiana with mild cognitive impairment who live in urban or rural areas and can use a smartphone and wear a smartwatch for two weeks.
Not a fit: People without mild cognitive impairment, those with more advanced dementia, anyone unable to use a smartphone or wear a watch, or those living outside the recruitment area are unlikely to benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to neighborhood-level stressors that increase dementia risk and guide targeted community supports or prevention efforts.
How similar studies have performed: Smaller pilot studies using ecological momentary assessment and passive digital markers have shown promise, but combining GPS-linked EMA, smartwatch data, and EHR-derived risk markers at this scale in people with MCI is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Bloomington, United States
- Trustees of Indiana University — Bloomington, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Jordan, Evan — Trustees of Indiana University
- Study coordinator: Jordan, Evan
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.