Silvia Sorensen, Ph.D.

Contact Information

Phone Numbers

Locations

Warner School for Education and Human Development
University of Rochester
500 Wilson Blvd, RC Box 270425
Rochester, NY 14627

Additional Links

Aging Well Initiative seeks to reach people.

How Effective Are Interventions With Caregivers?

Impact of a tele-medicine diabetic retinopathy screening program.

Faculty Appointments

Associate Professor - Center for Community Health and Prevention - Joint
Associate Professor - Department of Ophthalmology (SMD) - Joint

Biography

Research

Dr. Sörensen is an internationally known researcher and educator in the field of Human Development and Aging with particular interests in facilitating well-being among vulnerable older adults and their families. Collaborating with colleagues in Ophthalmology, Psychiatry, Primary Care, Immunology, and with community-based health activists, she has developed and/or evaluated interventions to (1) promote positive health behaviors, (2) prevent mental and physical health problems, (3) increase access to mental health services for underserved groups, (4) assist older adults with preparation for future care, and (5) support well-being among older adults. Her specific areas of research include successful aging through preparation for future care, family caregiver stress and coping, interventions with caregivers, interventions with vision-impaired older adults, future thinking among older adults, as well as health literacy and patient education for diabetes prevention.

She is the director of the Laboratory for Population Health, Disparities, and Intervention Research (LAPHDIR) in which new research and community health projects are hatched with the help of a Community Health-project Advisory Board (CHAB). Dr. Sörensen has a keen interest in community-partnered research and is a co-founder of the Aging Well Initiative community collaboration with faith-based organizations and member of community coalitions to focusing on the empowerment of underserved groups in order to reduce health disparities.

Areas of mentoring expertise include community engagement, research methods and statistics, and grant-writing; content expertise is in application of life-span developmental perspectives, adult development and aging, mental health in the context of chronic illness, health and aging, health disparities, and health promotion.

Credentials

Education

1984
BA | Antioch College
Psychology

1988
MS | Technical University of Berlin
Psychology

1993
PhD | The Pennsylvania State University
Human Development and Family Studies

Awards

2018
Dr. David Satcher Community Health Improvement Award for Senior Faculty
Sponsor: University of Rochester
Location: Rochester, NY

2017
Outstanding Reviewer Award
Sponsor: The Gerontologist, Publication of the Gerontological Society

2017
Outstanding Reviewer Award
Sponsor: , The Gerontologist, Publication of the Gerontological Society

2017
John D. Baum Memorial Lecture Award
Sponsor: Division of Geriatrics and Aging, University of Rochester School
Location: Rochester, NY

2016
Community Partner Award
Sponsor: Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Location: Rochester, NY

2013
Elected Fellow
Sponsor: American Psychological Association

2009 - 2010
Stuber Fellow
Sponsor: University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Location: Department of Psychiatry

2007
Leonard F. Salzman Research Award
Sponsor: Department of Psychiatry
Location: University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry

2006 - 2007
NIMH Advanced Research Institute Training in Geriatric Mental Health
Sponsor: National Institute of Mental Health
Location: Washington, DC

2006
Innovations in Community Scholarship Award
Sponsor: Dept. of Psychiatry
Location: University of Rochester School of Medicine

2006
Honoree at 1st Annual Excellence in Research Day
Sponsor: University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Location: Rochester, NY

2004 - Present
Listed in editions of Marquis Who's Who in Medicine and Health Care

2004
Collier Day Poster Award, Second Place
Sponsor: Department of Psychiatry
Location: University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry

2003
Elected Fellow
Sponsor: Gerontological Society of America

2001
Leonard F. Salzman Research Award
Sponsor: Department of Psychiatry
Location: University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry

1992
Summer Research Award
Sponsor: The Pennsylvania State University Graduate School

1992
Invited Membership
Sponsor: Kappa Omicron Nu Honors Society

1992
Wohlwill Endowment Award
Sponsor: Department of Human Development and Family Studies
Location: The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA

1991
Dissertation Award
Sponsor: Henry A. Murray Research Center at Radcliffe College
Location: Cambridge, MA

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Publications

Journal Articles

1/21/2023
Zhang X, Tao X, Ji B, Wang R, Sorensen S. "The Success of Cancer Crowdfunding Campaigns: The Influence of Project and Text Features." Journal of medical Internet research.. 2023 Jan 21; Epub 2023 Jan 21.

12/2022
Van Orden KA, Conwell Y, Chapman BP, Buttaccio A, VanBergen A, Beckwith E, Santee A, Rowe J, Palumbos D, Williams G, Messing S, Sörensen S, Tu X. "The helping older people engage (HOPE) study: Protocol & COVID modifications for a randomized trial." Contemporary clinical trials communications.. 2022 Dec; 30:101040. Epub 2022 Nov 30.

8/12/2021
Silverstein SM, Sörensen S, Sunkara A, Lai A, Fradkin SI, Ramchandran RS. "Association of vision loss and depressive symptomatology in older adults assessed for ocular health in senior living facilities." Ophthalmic & physiological optics : the journal of the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians (Optometrists).. 2021 Aug 12; Epub 2021 Aug 12.

Books & Chapters

2018
Chapter Title: Older Persons' Care-Related Preferences: Cultural and Cross-Cultural Influences
Book Title: Cultures of Care in Aging
Author List: Pinquart, M., Sörensen, S., Song, Y
Edited By: T. Boll, D. Ferring and J. Valsiner
Published By: Information Age Publishing 2018 in Charlotte, NC

2017
Chapter Title: Vision Impairment and Its Management in Older Adults
Book Title: Geriatric Rehabilitation: From Bedside to Curbside
Author List: Ramchandran, R., Hindman, H, & Sörensen, S.
Edited By: K. Rao Poduri
Published By: CRC Press, Taylor and Francis 2017 in Boca Raton, FL

2015
Chapter Title: Vision in Mid and Late Life
Book Title: Encyclopedia of Adulthood and Aging
Author List: Sörensen, S., White, K. & Ramchandran, R.S.
Edited By: S.K. Whitbourne
Published By: Wiley-Blackwell 2015 in Hoboken, NJ

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