How neighborhood places and safety shape teen stress and health
Official title: Activity Space Exposures, Safety and Physiological Stress, and their Consequences for Adolescent Health
Funded at Ohio State University · NIH-11132987 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how teens' everyday places and feelings of safety relate to their stress levels, substance use, and mental health using surveys, location information, and biological stress tests.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ohio State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Columbus, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 15, 2023 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $658,449 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD113259-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11132987 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are adolescents about 12–20 years old who live in the Columbus, OH metropolitan area and are willing to complete surveys, share routine location information, and provide biological samples, with a caregiver available to participate.
✕Less likely to help
People outside the age range or living outside the Columbus area, or those unwilling to share location or biological data, would not be eligible and would not gain direct benefits from participation.
What this research studies
You would join a group of about 700 adolescents (and their caregivers) in the Columbus, OH area who complete surveys about routines, safety, and health. The team will combine your reported routine locations with neighborhood data on violence and social belonging, and collect biological stress markers like cortisol and inflammation measures. A smaller subsample will take part in an intensive six-month follow-up with frequent check-ins to capture real-time experiences, locations, and stress responses. The study aims to link where you go and how safe you feel to changes in stress, substance use, and mental health over time.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to neighborhood- or school-focused changes that reduce teen stress and lower risks for substance use and mental health problems.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research links neighborhood conditions to adolescent stress, but combining detailed activity-space mapping with real-time biological stress measures and longitudinal follow-up is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Ohio State University
Columbus, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Browning, Christopher R — Ohio State University
- Study coordinator: Browning, Christopher R
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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.