| Faculty Profile |
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Secondary Title
Adjunct, Institute of Gerontology
Phone
313-577-2930
Fax
313-577-2735
Office
2251 Faculty/Administration Building
Biography
Dr. Morton received her dual-title Ph.D. in Sociology and Gerontology from Purdue University. Broadly, Dr. Morton's academic interests center on understanding health and aging throughout the life course. Her research primarily focuses on the ways in which different domains of childhood disadvantage (e.g., socioeconomic disadvantage; maltreatment) influence health and mortality in adulthood. This line of work underscores how early-life disadvantage can impact later-life health through multiple mechanisms such as socioeconomic status, health behaviors, and physiology.
Dr. Morton's approach to studying the early origins of adult health also addresses conceptual and methodological issues surrounding life course research. Her work has been published in various journals such as Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Social Science & Medicine, and the Journals of Gerontology: Series B; highlighted by national and international news outlets; and received several awards, including the Gerontological Society of America's Theoretical Developments in Social Gerontology.
Selected publications
Morton, Patricia M. 2022. “Childhood Disadvantage and Adult Functional Status: Do Early-Life Exposures Jeopardize Healthy Aging?” Journal of Aging and Health Advance access online (doi: 10.1177/08982643211064723).
Morton, Patricia M., and Kenneth F. Ferraro. 2020. "Early Social Origins of Biological Risks for Men and Women in Later Life." Journal of Health and Social Behavior 61:503-522.
Ferraro, Kenneth F. and Patricia M. Morton. 2018. “What Do We mean by Accumulation? Advancing Conceptual Precision for a Core Idea in Gerontology.” The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Social Sciences 73:269-278.