Dr. Puga's research focuses on stress, resilience, and the mental health of older adults living with chronic illness and their family caregivers. He is specifically interested in daily and long-term patterns of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. His lab uses multi-time scale designs and applies structural equation modeling, multi-level modeling, and group-based trajectory modeling a) to examine inter-and intra-individual variations in depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation, b) to identify psychosocial, behavioral, and biological factors that increase resilience to stress and improve quality of life in older adults and c) to test behavioral interventions that reduce stress and the burden of age-related diseases for patients and their family caregivers. A significant focus of his research is on diverse patient populations, specifically Hispanics and sexual/gender minorities, that are disproportionately impacted by stress and age-related diseases.
