Take a Vacation, Contribute to Research

The study seeks to answer the question, “How do vacations affect our health?”

To demonstrate potential costly effects of not taking time off from work as well as the beneficial effects that can result from vacationing, a professor in the Falk College is leading a new research study to examine how past and current vacationing behavior impacts psychological and physical health. There is a good amount of research on the health effects of stressors and negative events, but very little research on the potential health effects of positive events and activities. So this study will be one of the first to address the question, “Do vacations affect our health? And, if so, which kinds of vacations?”

Adults who are employed full-time, eligible for paid vacation time and are planning a vacation in the next one to four months are now being sought. Participants will be compensated with a stipend up to $250. The study consists of three appointments at the University that involve a venous blood draw, questionnaires regarding stress and psychological functioning, a blood pressure and heart rate fluctuation reading, and body measurements (such as waist circumference) as well as a hair sample. Participants will spend approximately two hours on campus over the course of three visits. In addition, participants will fill out weekly surveys online taking approximately 30 minutes each.

More details can be found here: http://falk.syr.edu/Feature/VacaHealthStudy.aspx, including compensation info. For more information, call Bryce Hruska at 315-443-1526 or email bjhruska@syr.edu. Please feel free to pass the info. along to family and friends who are working full time, eligible for paid time off and are geographically located in reasonable travel proximity to campus, since the study will involve a few visits to our on-site lab.