Based in the Department of Psychology at the University of Mississippi (also known as Ole Miss) and under the direction of Dr. Erica L. O'Brien, the VIBE Lab broadly studies how aging-related psychological factors make contact with a person's functioning, performance, and behavior in everyday life.
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We take a theoretical approach primarily grounded in lifespan developmental psychology. We specifically adopt the perspective that people monitor their own development as they age and this has influences on how they construct and lead their lives. Additionally, we view development as a process that unfolds on different timescales both in the short -term (such as over days and weeks) and the long-term (such as over years and decades). By examining how people think about and adapt to aging-related changes at these different "frequencies," we can deepen our understanding about the contexts and trajectories of aging more generally.
We tackle basic questions that have practical applications for people's health as they age. Our ongoing work seeks to (1) understand determinants of, and natural fluctuations in, people's views of aging; (2) link different aging-related psychological variables to people's motivations, self-regulation, and (emotional, cognitive or physical) functioning, performance, or behavior; and (3) pinpoint potential differences between age groups in these links. Addressing these questions can uncover insights that help inform the development of interventions or programs designed to help individuals move toward healthier lives as they age.
We use methods that help us reach people in the natural context of their everyday lives. We use a wide range of assessment approaches (such as daily diaries) and multiple technologies (such as mobile applications and wearable devices) to reach people as they go about their everyday lives. These methods allow us to gain insights about individual differences in potential cause-and-effect-like processes.
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