One of Dr. Jaremka's core interests is understanding quality of life issues among breast cancer survivors. She has a number of published papers about the links between loneliness (and other threats to belonging) and mental and physical health (e.g., pain and depression) among survivors. She plans to follow-up on these ideas by investigating the impact that social stress has on different hormonal and immunological markers, and how these physiological changes may eventually impact survivors' quality of life.

The Jaremka lab is currently conducting a series of studies that aim to understand how threats to belonging ultimately result in negative health outcomes, particularly obesity and cardiovascular disease. The specific design of these studies varies over time and can range from longitudinal observational studies to experimental lab studies. We collect a variety of physiological samples, including saliva, blood, and cardiovascular reactivity, which allows us to get in-depth information about peripheral physiological responses.

We are currently developing a set of studies about anti- and pro- social behavior following rejection and other threats to belonging. In these studies, we typically manipulate rejection using an experimental paradigm and then assess interpersonal behavior either via self-report or behavioral methods. Over time, we hope to flesh out the key factors that shape how people respond to threats to belonging, both in terms of situational and individual difference factors.