Research Associate Professor, Survey Research Center and Faculty Associate, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research
Biography
Esther Friedman is a Research Associate Professor at the Survey Research Center, where she also serves as an Associate Director of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). Dr. Friedman is a sociologist whose research examines how families and communities facilitate the health and wellbeing of older adults. Much of her recent work focuses on family caregiving and long-term care. She is currently leading a study for which she is collecting and analyzing new data on the social support networks of family caregivers to persons with dementia.
Projects
Health and Well-being Over the Life Course and Across Multiple Generations
Health, Wellbeing, and the Social Networks of Family Caregivers of People with Alzheimer’s Disease
Network for Advancing Methodological Research in Longitudinal Studies of AgingFunded Research
- Caregiving, Complex Family and Kinship Ties, and Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD)
- Continuity and Change in American Economic and Social Life: The PSID 2017 – 2020
- Health and Well-being Over the Life Course and Across Multiple Generations
- Health, Wellbeing, and the Social Networks of Family Caregivers of People with Alzheimer’s Disease
- Improving Inclusivity of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias Research for Asian Americans and Latinx through Nationally Representative Hybrid Sampling.
- Michigan Center on the Demography of Aging
- Network for Advancing Methodological Research in Longitudinal Studies of Aging
- PSID 2021-2024: Continuity and Change in American Economic and Social Life
- PSID 2025: Continuity and Change in American Economic and Social Life
- Research Network for Alzheimer’s Disease Home and Community Based Services
- The Longitudinal and Dynamic Effects of Food Insecurity on Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Risk
Publications
- David P. Kennedy, Esther M Friedman, Allison Kirkegaard, Sarah Edgington, Regina Shih. 2024. Perceived loss of support to community caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Journal of Community Psychology 52(3):475-497.
- Kirkegaard, Allison, Esther M Friedman, Edgington, Sarah, Kennedy, David. 2024. Increased Care Provision and Caregiver Wellbeing: Moderation by Changes in Social Network Care Provision. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 79(5):gbae015.
- Daniel Siconolfi, Molly Waymouth, Esther M Friedman, Debra Saliba, Regina Shih,. 2024. Key Informants’ Visions and Solutions to Improve Home- and Community-Based Services for Older Adults and Persons With Dementia. Research on Aging
- Esther M Friedman, Sarah Edgington, José J. Escarce, Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, Regina A. Shih. 2024. Implications of Rebalancing Home-Based Care for Family Caregivers to Older Adults. Journal of Applied Gerontology
- Leung, Cindy W, Noura Elise Insolera, Wolfson, Julia A, McEvoy, Claire T, Lindsay H Ryan, Esther M Friedman, Kenneth M Langa, Steven G Heeringa, Hao, Wei. 2024. Food insecurity and dementia risk in US older adults: Evidence from the 2013-2021 Panel Study of Income Dynamics. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B
- Daniel Siconolfi, Emma G. Thomas, Emily K. Chen, Esther M Friedman, Regina A. Shih. 2023. Low Exposure to Home- and Community-Based Services Among U.S. Adults: Cause for Concern?. Journal of Applied Gerontology 42(2):341–346.
- Esther M Friedman, Scott R. Beach, Richard Schulz. 2023. Out-of-Pocket Health Care Spending at Older Ages: Do Caregiving Arrangements Matter?. Journal of Applied Gerontology 42(5):1013-1021.
- Kim, Hansol, Beach, Scott R, Esther M Friedman, Donovan, Heidi, Schulz, Richard. 2023. Effects of Childcare, Work, and Caregiving Intensity on Male and Female Family Caregivers. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 78(6):959-968.
- Vicki A Freedman, Agree, Emily M, Seltzer, Judith A, Kira S Birditt, Fingerman, Karen L, Esther M Friedman, Lin, I-Fen, Margolis, Rachel, Park, Sung S, Sarah Elizabeth Patterson, Polenick, Courtney A, Reczek, Rin, Reyes, Adriana M, Truskinovsky, Yulya, Wiemers, Emily E, Wu, Huijing, Wolf, Douglas A, Wolff, Jennifer L, Zarit, Steven H. 2023. Changing Demography of Late-Life Family Caregiving: A Research Agenda to Understand Future Care Networks for An Aging U.S. Population. The Gerontologist
- Vicki A Freedman, Agree, Emily M, Seltzer, Judith A, Kira S Birditt, Fingerman, Karen L, Esther M Friedman, Lin, I-Fen, Margolis, Rachel, Park, Sung S, Sarah Elizabeth Patterson, Polenick, Courtney A, Reczek, Rin, Reyes, Adriana M, Truskinovsky, Yulya, Wiemers, Emily E, Wu, Huijing, Wolf, Douglas A, Wolff, Jennifer L, Zarit, Steven H. 2023. The Changing Demography of Late-Life Family Caregiving: A Research Agenda to Understand Future Care Networks for an Aging U.S. Population. The Gerontologist
- Waymouth, Molly, Siconolfi, Daniel, Esther M Friedman, Saliba, Debra, Ahluwalia, Sangeeta C, Shih, Regina A. 2023. Barriers and Facilitators to Home- and Community-Based Services Access for Persons With Dementia and Their Caregivers. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 78(6):1085-1097.
- Esther M Friedman, Allison Kirkegaard, David P. Kennedy, Sarah Edgington, Regina A. Shih. 2023. Change in Caregiving to Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differences by Dementia Status. Journal of Applied Gerontology 42(12):2277-2282.
- Carolyn M. Rutter, Ifeanyi Edochie, Esther M Friedman, Mary E. Slaughter, Margaret M. Weden. 2022. A Simple Method for Simulating Dementia Onset and Death within an Existing Demographic Model. Medical Decision Making 42(1):43-50.
- Esther M Friedman, Houle, Jason N, Kate Cagney, Slaughter, Mary E, Shih, Regina A. 2021. The Foreclosure Crisis, Community Change, and the Cognitive Health of Older Adults. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 76(5):956-967.
- Esther M Friedman, Regina A. Shih, Sangeeta C. Ahluwalia, Virginia I. Kotzias, Jessica L. Phillips, Daniel Siconolfi, Debra Saliba. 2021. Factors Explaining State Differences in Applying for a Recent Long-Term Care Program that Promotes Aging in Place: Perspectives of Medicaid Administrators. Journal of Applied Gerontology 40(9):972-979.
- Daniel Siconolfi, Sangeeta C. Ahluwalia, Esther M Friedman, Debra Saliba, Regina A. Shih. 2021. Perceived impacts of a Medicaid rebalancing initiative to increase home- and community-based services. Health Services Research 56(6):1137-1145.
- Regina A. Shih, Esther M Friedman, Emily K. Chen, Grace C. Whiting. 2021. Prevalence and Correlates of Gray Market Use for Aging and Dementia Long-Term Care in the U.S.. Journal of Applied Gerontology 41(4):1030-1034.
- Sangeeta C. Ahluwalia, Esther M Friedman, Daniel Siconolfi, Debra Saliba, Jessica Phillips, Regina Shih. 2021. Promises and Pitfalls of Health Information Technology for Home- and Community-Based Services. Journal of Applied Gerontology 40(5):558-565.
- Richard Schulz, Scott R. Beach, Esther M Friedman. 2021. Caregiving Factors as Predictors of Care Recipient Mortality. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 29(3):295-303.
- Esther M Friedman, Kennedy, David P. 2021. Typologies of Dementia Caregiver Support Networks: A Pilot Study. The Gerontologist 61(8):1221-1230.
- Esther M Friedman, Madhumita Ghosh-Dastidar, Teague Ruder, Daniel Siconolfi, Regina A. Shih. 2021. Trends In Home Care Versus Nursing Home Workforce Sizes: Are States Converging Or Diverging Over Time?. Health Affairs 40(12):1875-1882.