Dr. Jerome Kotecki
<b>Department: </b>Nutrition and Health Science<br><b>Research Area: </b>Diet quality screening in the community and clinical settings<br>
Department: Nutrition and Health Science
Research Focus: My current research focus is on measuring lifestyle “vital signs” through screenings in community and clinical settings. In the United States the CDC attributes 70% of deaths to chronic disease, with 90% directly linked to 6 modifiable lifestyle factors—(1) low diet quality, (2) physical inactivity, (3) poor sleep quality, (4) lack of social support, (5) unhealthy coping skills, and (6) tobacco and alcohol misuse. Public health researchers advocate assessing these 6 factors as lifestyle “vital signs” to reduce chronic disease burden; however, assessment requires valid, brief, user-friendly, and accessible screening tools.
Potential Student Project(s):
This project is for someone who is passionate about helping others make better health choices. We are interested in developing 4 more screeners to measure poor sleep quality, lack of social support, unhealthy coping skills, tobacco and alcohol misuse. These screeners would be added to our recently developed and published Food Quality Screener and Physical Activity Screener (available online: https://lifestylescreeners.framer.website).
This project is unique because it offers the student the opportunity to be part of a community and clinically based research project. The student would gain experience in translational research activities such as how to conduct a literature search, how to read and understand a research article, scientific writing, how to conduct ethical research with human subjects, and gain “hands on” expertise in screener design. In short, I will train you on data collection, data analysis, and translating the results into public health practice. Our findings will not only provide us with a knowledge-to-action framework to advance community and clinical health practice but challenge your mind and train you to think in new ways.
Attributes/skills/background sought in undergraduate:
Self-motivated, organized, strong work ethic, a curious mind, a passion for health, attention to detail, works well independently and as part of a team.
Mentoring Plan:
The student will work for 5 hours each week including one hour of 1-on-1 interaction with me. The interaction may take place in-person or via Zoom to talk about the week's progress and tasks for the upcoming week. They will work with me to conduct, analyze, further research to meet established validity and reliability criteria. Hourly commitment is negotiable, but over the course of a semester will average approximately 5 hours per week.
Contact: 765-285-8359, Health Professions Building 532