Tina Savla

• Stress, Health and Well-Being in Mid and Late Life
• Family Relationships, Support Networks, and Caregiving
• Chronic Disease Management (e.g., Diabetes, Mild Cognitive Impairment)
• Longitudinal Designs and Daily Diary Methods; Structural Equation Models
• Missing Data Analysis and Statistical Power

• Ph.D., University of Georgia
• M.S., University of Bombay
• B.S.c., University of Bombay

• Chair, Program Committee of APA Division 20, American Psychological Association
• Editorial Board, Journal of Gerontology: Social Science
• Associate Editor, Innovation in Aging

• Presidential Citation, American Psychological Association, Division 10, 2018
  
• Fellow, Gerontological Society of America, 2013
• Excellence in Research and Creative Scholarship, Virginia Tech College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, 2013
• Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week, 2011

Books

Davey, A., & Savla, J. (2010).  Statistical Power Analysis with Missing Data: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach. New York: Routledge.

Journal Articles

Savla, J., Wang, Z., Zhu, J., Brossoie, N., Roberto, K. A., & Blieszner, R. (accepted). Mastery and longevity in spousal caregivers of persons with dementia. Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological and Social Sciences.

Mitzner, T., Savla, J., Boot, W., Sharit, J., Charness, N., Czaja, S., & Rogers, W. (2019). Technology adoption by older adults: Findings from the PRISM trial. The Gerontologist, 59, 34-44. doi:10.1093/geront/gny113

Savla, J., Bivens, L. R.,* Roberto, K. A., & Blieszner, R. (2018). Where you age matters: Individual and county level predictors of formal and informal care in rural Appalachia. Journal of Aging and Health. doi:10.1177/0898264318761907

Savla, J. (2018). Salivary Cortisol: Is it still the canary in the coal mine? Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological and Social Sciences, 73, 435-436. doi:10.1093/geronb/gbx175

Savla, J. S., Zarit, S. H., & Almeida, D. M. (2018). Routine support to parents and stressors in everyday domains: Associations with negative affect and cortisol. Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological and Social Sciences, 73, 437-446. doi:10.1093/geronb/gbx033

• Church, Extension and Academic Partners Empowering Healthy Families (2018-2023), Agency: USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture ($2,250,310), Principal Investigator: Kathy Hosig, PhD, Co-Director for Research: Tina Savla, PhD, Co-Director for Extension: Sarah Misyak, PhD
• Banksafe Training Evaluation (2017-2018), Agency: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP; $78,153), Investigators: Pamela B. Teaster, PhD & Tina Savla, PhD
• Reduction of Risk Factors for Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Re-Injuries using a Novel Biofeedback Approach (2017-2020), Agency: National Institute of Arthritis & Musculoskeletal & Skin Diseases ($528,292), Principal Investigator: Robin M. Queen, PhD, Role: Co-Investigator, Other Investigators: Thomas Ollendick, PhD
• PAACC: Practice of Acceptance, Awareness, and Compassion in Caregiving (2017-2020), Agency: Department of Defense ($434,000), Principal Investigator: Mamta Sapra, MD (Salem Veterans Affairs Medical Center), Principal Investigator: M. Lindsey Jacobs Dodson, PhD (Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare), Principal Investigator: J. Tina Savla, PhD (at Virginia Tech), Other Investigators: Katherine Luci, PhD; Lauren Hagemann, PhD
• FACES-AD: Families in Appalachia Caring for Elders with Alzheimer’s Disease (2017-2019), Agency: National Institute on Aging ($418,001), Role: Multiple Principal Investigator (with Karen A. Roberto, PhD), Other Investigators: Rosemary Blieszner, PhD; Nancy Brossoie, PhD; Aubrey Knight, MD
• A New Biomarker Tool for Breast Cancer Detection in Populations At Risk ($20,000), Agency: Institute of Society, Culture and Environment, Role: Co-PI with Carla Finkielstein
• Assessing the Impact of Involuntary Relocation on Nursing Facility Residents ($230,151), Agency: VA Department of Medical Assistance Services, Principal Investigator: Karen A. Roberto, Role: Co-Investigator
• Daily Stress, Health and Well-Being of Family Caregivers ($2,966,367), Agency:  National Institute of Aging, Principal Investigator: Steven H. Zarit, Role: Consultant

Pre-meal Water and Weight Loss: Cognitive, Behavioral, and Physiological Aspects (2018-2019)

• Agency: Virginia Tech’s Institute of Society, Culture and Environment ($27,498)
• Principal Investigator: Brenda Davy, PhD
• Role: Co-Investigator

Long-term Neurobehavioral and Psychosocial Adaptations Following the Virginia Tech Shootings: A Ten-year Follow-up (2017-2018)

• Agency: Virginia Tech’s Adaptive Brain & Behavior Destination Area ($10,000)
• Principal Investigator: Russell Jones, PhD & Bruce Scarpa-Friedman, PhD
• Role: Co-Investigator

Long-term Neurobehavioral and Psychosocial Impacts of a Mass Shooting (2018-2019)

• Agency: Dean’s Discovery Fund, College of Science ($20,000)
• Principal Investigator: Russell Jones, PhD & Bruce Scarpa-Friedman, PhD
• Role: Co-Investigator