Eric Cerino
  • Psychology
  • Class of 2014
  • Stratford, CT

Eastern Connecticut State University Student Eric Cerino of Stratford Awarded Prestigious National Science Foundation Fellowship

2014 Jun 24

Eric Cerino of Stratford, CT, a 2014 graduate of Eastern Connecticut State University, has been named as the recipient of a highly competitive Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) fellowship from the National Science Foundation (NSF). A $30,000 stipend will cover Cerino's tuition and support direct research costs during the first 12 months of his Ph.D. program at Oregon State University's (OSU) LIFE (Linking Individuals, Families, and Environments) in an Aging Society program. Cerino's major is Psychology.

The NSF fellowship allows students to collaborate across disciplines in a multidisciplinary research traineeship. Only five students from across the nation are chosen for entry into the OSU program. Students pick a primary core according to their Ph.D. program and a supplementary core.

"My primary core is Psychosocial and my supplementary core is Gerontechnology, so I will have the opportunity to extend my research with collaboration with the engineering professors and students," said Cerino. "It's awesome because I will continue my successful aging psychosocial research, with the inclusion of innovative and New Age technologies that I will get to create with the engineers."

Cerino also recently presented his research project, "Investigating Subjective Age, Level of Activity and Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults," at the 18th Annual Posters on the Hill event in Washington, D.C. Each spring the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) hosts an annual undergraduate poster session on Capitol Hill. The event helps members of Congress understand the importance of undergraduate research by talking directly with the students who are selected to present.

The goal of Cerino's research was to see if depression levels among senior citizens were impacted by how young a person feels and how active he or she is in society. "I wanted to tackle something that affects senior citizens," said Cerino. "At the Trumbull Senior Center, I taught a computer course to seniors and fell in love with the idea of helping that age group. I have dedicated my research to them."

The results of Cerino's study indicated that senior citizens who had a more youthful subjective age reported fewer depressive symptoms. In addition, seniors who took part in more activity (both physical and cognitive exercises) tended to have a more youthful subjective age.

Cerino, mentored by Eastern Psychology Professor Jennifer Leszczynski, created one of 60 posters selected from approximately 600 submissions for the April 2014 Posters on the Hill event.