2025 Summer Fellows

Due to the ongoing population aging, one in six adults in the United States was age 65 years and older in 2023. Currently, one in three older adults rely on Social Security for their financial needs. Preparing for retirement continues to be an essential social issue in the aging society. Particularly, financial literacy, which is a set of abilities to plan, manage, and execute financial-related activities, has received greater attention to ensure later life well-being in general, and financial well-being in particular. However, research on population-level financial literacy assessment has been limited. In 2023, the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) adopted the series of financial literacy and financial behavior measures for the first time in the history of PIAAC since 2012. The new PIAAC data provide a unique opportunity to develop financial literacy and financial  behavior profiles of middle-aged and older Americans. Findings from the proposed study will inform policies and interventions to promote financial literacy in middle-aged and older age, as well as well-being in later life.

Illicit drug markets and overdoses present significant public health and safety challenges, with Baltimore, MD, having the highest overdose death rate among large cities in the United States. Studies link public policy, health/social service availability, socioeconomic disadvantage, built environment features (e.g., vacant housing), and law enforcement  practices to urban drug market activity and overdose rates. However, little research has explored how patterns of routine human movement across geographic space influence drug activity in urban areas, creating a critical knowledge gap. This mobility is central to the spatial distribution of overdoses and drug markets, as routine movement forms mobility networks— interconnected patterns of human movement between locations that influence the spread and informal control of drug use and sales within and across geographic spaces. Leveraging my expertise in social network and geographic data analysis,1– 10 this project uses detailed data on urban residents’ routine movement to study the spatial patterning of drug selling and overdoses across Baltimore street segments (i.e., the section of a street between two intersections). I will integrate large-scale mobility data collected from opt-in mobile device applications with state, local, and survey data to: (1) assess how mobility networks impact drug market activity and overdose rates within street segments, and (2) examine how these networks facilitate the spread of overdoses across the geographic space. I hypothesize that street segments with high incoming mobility from non-residents will have elevated drug activity and overdose rates, while mobility among local residents will reduce drug activity through enhanced informal social control. Additionally, I hypothesize that overdoses will cluster in street segments that are connected within the mobility network, enabling their spread across Baltimore. Public Health Relevance: This research has significant public health implications by elucidating how human mobility influences the spatial patterns of drug overdoses and drug market activity. By advancing the understanding of these dynamics, the findings can guide adaptive, place-based interventions such as targeted naloxone distribution, mobile outreach, and fentanyl testing, thereby lowering service provision barriers and increasing engagement with people who use drugs (PWUD). The study aims to develop models using routinely collected data, offering insights that can inform public health strategies not only in Baltimore but also in other communities impacted by drug activity and associated problems that it generates, ultimately improving public health outcomes.