|
Richard
Olsen, Ph.D.
Director, Health Care and Aging Environments Research
Richard Olsen, Ph.D. is an environmental psychologist
specializing in design research and evaluation of facilities
for people with physical, cognitive and emotional disabilities.
Dr. Olsen was the principal investigator on five research grants
funded by the New Jersey Developmental Disabilities Council-Rutgers
University Research Consortium. These studies focused on a wide
range of topics including consumers’ evaluations of the physical
and social environment of their community based residences,
their reactions to community living after institutional life,
aging with a disability in the community, and the concerns of
older parents caring for an adult child with a disability.
Dr. Olsen was also the principal investigator
on several research grants that analyzed the impact of the physical
environment on people with Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias
and their caregivers. He was the senior author of Homes That
Help, a research-based publication that offers guidelines
for creating a safe and supportive caregiving home through design
modifications, assistive technology and behavioral management
strategies.
Currently, Dr. Olsen and his colleagues are investigating
the ability of easy-to-access nostalgic music and videos to
engage people with dementia and to stimulate positive behavior.
He is also the principal investigator on a grant to develop
a research-based manual for parents raising a child with physical
disabilities. The manual will provide practical advice for modifying
the home to meet the changing needs of the child and the family.
This project is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Dr. Olsen is a member of the Gerontological Society
of America, The American Society on Aging and he is a member
of the Advisory Council for the New Jersey Technology Assistive
Resource Program. He has published and lectured extensively
on the impact of the physical setting on people with special
needs. Dr. Olsen is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Catholic University.
He received his Ph.D. in Environmental Psychology from the Graduate
Center of City University of New York.
Return
to Top of Page
B.
Lynn Hutchings, M.Arch.
Research Architect, Health Care and Aging Environments
Lynn Hutchings, M. Arch., and PhD candidate in
Policy and Social Work at Rutgers University. s. Hutchings'
research interests include analyzing the social and environmental
needs of people with dementia, age-related illnesses, and people
with developmental disabilities. Together with Richard Olsen,
Ph.D., Ms. Hutchings has completed numerous studies of the environmental
issues affect people with special needs and their caregivers.
Studies investigate the impact of both the physical and social
environment on populations with specific disabilities and their
caregivers and explore caregivers’ strategies for creating a
safe and supportive home. The information dotained from one
study was used to create a manual for Alzheimer’s caregivers:
Homes That Help: Advice from Caregivers for Creating a
Supportive Home. Planning a Supportive Home Environment
for Children with Disabilities. Another study, exploring
the home environments of children with physical disabilities
resulted in a book and video, A House for All Children.
Ms. Hutchings also been the project manager for a series of
studies evaluating the environmental needs of people with both
physical and cognitive disabilities, including cerebral palsy,
spina bifida, brain and spinal cord injuries, and mental retardation.
Ms. Hutchings' research has also included studies that explore
the impact of media (music and video) interventions on Alzheimer’s
patients in an adult daycare setting, two studies on the deinstitutionalization
of adults with developmental disabilities, and future care settings
of adults with developmental disabilities who now live with
and are cared for by parents or siblings aged 55 and older.
Ms. Hutchings holds a B.F.A. from Beaver College,
an M.F.A. from Rutgers University, and an M.Arch from NJIT.
Return
to Top of Page
|
"Generating new knowledge to improve the built
environment and enhance quality of life"
|
Click
Here for the CABSR Site Directory
ˆback
to top
|
