Martha Bruce

Martha L. Bruce, Ph.D., M.P.H., is an Professor of Sociology in Psychiatry, Weill Medical College of Cornell University. Dr. Bruce was trained in psychiatric epidemiology and medical sociology and is an expert in population-based survey design and sampling procedures. Her research focuses on psychosocial risks factors and outcomes of depression in later life, with a major focus on the longitudinal relationships between depression and functional disability. Both depressive disorders and functional disability are highly prevalent in sub-populations of the elderly. Each is characterized by immense personal suffering and each contributes to the risk of mortality, institutionalization, and dependent living. Dr. Bruce's published work includes epidemiologic analyses of data from community-based samples of elderly adults that affect social and functional factors on incident and recurrent risk of major depression and depressive symptoms, as well as studies of the impact of depression on functional decline and mortality.