Stress and Sleep in Queer Identifying Adults

About the Project:

Eckerd College’s Health and Well-Being lab is seeking strong undergraduate research students with an interest in psychology, biology, and health. As part of training in the Health and Well-Being lab, students will gain a variety of research skills including, sleep assessment, anthropometric measurement (e.g., blood pressure, height, weight, and waist and hip circumference), study design, and statistical techniques.

Currently, the Health and Well-Being Lab is planning a project exploring sleep and stress in college students and other adults who identify as sexual and gender minorities (e.g., queer, gay, bisexual, gender-fluid, and trans). This project seeks to understand the links between stress and sleep and factors that may offset the negative consequences of stress on sleep in queer-identifying people.

Dr. Sarah Lyle is the director of Eckerd’s Health and Well-Being Lab, and she teaches courses in health psychology, developmental psychology, and research methods. Her research takes an interdisciplinary approach to the study of stress and resilience across the lifespan.

The First-Year Research Associate Program at Eckerd College honors academically outstanding students with awards of up to $1,000. The program also provides the opportunity, during the freshman year, for the award winners to work closely with a sponsor (faculty or administrative personnel) on a project of mutual interest. Associates might assist with research for faculty publication or new courses, conduct scientific experiments, work with creative artists, or develop projects related to any phase of the academic, cultural, and social life of the college. Scholars are selected on the basis of achievement in high school and on the creativity and depth of responses to items on this application.​

Online submission due no later than February 1, 2025.