Patricia A. Thomas

Ph.D. Sociology - Duke University

M.A. Sociology – Duke University

B.A. Sociology, American Studies – California State University, Fullerton

As a social relationships, aging, life course, and health scholar, Dr. Thomas is motivated by two overarching questions in her program of research: (1) How do social relationships across the life course influence health, especially among older adults? (2) How does social position shape health and the impact of social relationships on health? These questions shed light on the social determinants of health and how social relationships can provide a resource or constitute another source of inequality. She has examined social engagement, social support and strain in relationships, community belonging, as well as childhood factors and their impact on social relationships and health in later life. Her most recent focus is on the impact of affectionate touch (e.g., hugging) on health in later life.

Dr. Thomas is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America – the highest category of membership within the society, which is an acknowledgment of outstanding work in the field of aging, and she was elected the 2025-26 Chair of the Section on Aging and the Life Course of the American Sociological Association. She is a Faculty Associate of Purdue’s Center on Aging and the Life Course, a Faculty Partner of Purdue’s Center for Families, and a faculty affiliate of the Center for Aging Families (a Center across Purdue, Bowling Green State University, and Ohio State University).