Social Networks in Health and Prevention
The goal of the Social Networks in Health and Prevention research group is to understand how social networks shape, transmit and prevent poor health. We do this by moving beyond the classic biomedical individualistic approach and look at the bi-directional association between social networks and health.
In this research group we move beyond the classic biomedical individualistic analytical approach to health and prevention and look at how social networks shape, transmit, and prevent conditions, syndromes, and diseases.
We work with social networks in various forms including formal and informal social connections, family dynamics and formation, isolation and loneliness, relationships between patients and providers, and between professionals. We study the function and structure of social networks, and how they influence health and disease, and how social networks are influenced in return.
We look at how social networks and their influence on diseases vary across demographics, social-economic factors and geography. We work with data from Denmark, the Nordic countries, the European Union, Unites States, Vietnam, and Uganda.
We use qualitative methods, epidemiology, and data science methods such as machine learning.
Examples of our most recent research shows that people who have strong social networks have a lower risk of developing disease, and ’decline in the ability to perform daily activities. On the other hand, having a spouse with a high body mass index or a cardiometabolic disease increases you own risk of developing a similar condition, and having a spouse with chronic diseases increases your risk of developing depression and anxiety. Further, children having parents with obesity develop overweight 19 years earlier in life (at age 6 years) than children who have parents with normal-weight.
- Social Relations and Cardiometabolic Conditions
Using secondary data from various countries, we investigate family and spousal resemblance in cardiometabolic disease status and related conditions and risk factors. We use established methods and experiments with new methodological approaches.
Contact person: Jannie Nielsen
- Social and gender inequality in health consequences of being an informal caregiver of adults with chronic disease
Using qualitative and quantitative methods, this project aims to investigate social and gender inequalities in the development of risk factors for health-related consequences of being an informal caregiver compared to those who are not care-givers, and how these inequalities can be mitigated by social support and health literacy.
Contact person: Rikke Lund
- A life course approach to identifying predictors of loneliness and social isolation in early old age using machine learning and causal discovery methods
Taking a machine learning approach,Our we aim to study what factors across the life course are the strongest predictors of loneliness and social isolation in early old age
Contact person: Rikke Lund
Research group leader
Charlotte Juul Nilsson
Associate professor
Email: cjni@sund.ku.dk
Research Group Leader
Jannie Nielsen
Associate Professor
Email: Jannie.nielsen@sund.ku.dk
Researchers
| Name | Title | Phone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search in Name | Search in Title | Search in Phone | |
| Andersen, Ingelise | Associate Professor Emerita | +4535327662 | |
| Bender, Mette | Guest Researcher | +4535328033 | |
| Blohm, Frederikke Sissel | PhD Fellow | +4535329891 | |
| Brønnum-Hansen, Henrik | Emeritus | +4535327974 | |
| Christensen, Ulla | Associate Professor Emerita | +4535327663 | |
| Hougaard, Charlotte Ørsted | Data Administrator | +4535337217 | |
| Labriola, Merete | Professor | +4535333132 | |
| Lund, Rikke | Professor, Head of Section | +4535327992 | |
| Molbo, Drude | Data Administrator | +4535326736 | |
| Mortensen, Ole Steen | Professor | +4523328431 | |
| Nielsen, Jannie | Associate Professor | +4535331262 | |
| Nilsson, Charlotte Juul | Associate Professor | +4535327122 | |
| Nørmark, Laura Elina Pirhonen | Assistant Professor | +4520706885 |
External researchers
| Caroline Grove Davidsen |