Starting a university gerontology research laboratory: Experiences from researchers in public health and psychology

ABSTRACT

Although founding and directing an independent research laboratory is often expected of faculty at American universities, there are several barriers to successful completion of this important task. There is little guidance in the literature regarding exactly how to go about starting a research laboratory. The guidance that exists for faculty often focuses on running research labs in the “hard sciences,” such as biomedical science and engineering, leaving social and behavioral scientists out of such considerations. Additionally, smaller or teaching-focused universities often have little infrastructure or support for starting a research lab, so faculty at these institutions may not know where to begin. These barriers are significant concerns for junior faculty, who are often unprepared for the realities and challenges of starting a successful research lab while obtaining other milestones required for promotion and tenure. We present two examples of recently-formed gerontology research laboratories begun by junior faculty, one in the psychology department of a research university and one in public health at a teaching-focused university. Our case studies present the reader with specific examples, lessons learned, and guidance for starting their own gerontology research laboratory in higher education, whether as a physical or virtual space, as well as recommendations on maintaining its functioning during a global pandemic.

KEYWORDS:

• Research laboratory
• social sciences
• behavioral sciences
• junior faculty
• mentoring
• student research assistants

Acknowledgements

Partial financial support for the Healthy Aging Research Laboratory was provided by the University of Alaska Anchorage Center for Community Engaged Learning and an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under grant number 2P20GM103395.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [2P20GM103395]; Center for Community Engagement and Learning, University of Alaska Anchorage .