Lynette Dias, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
lynette.dias@stonybrookmedicine.edu
Dr. Dias received her doctorate in Social/Health Psychology from SUNY at Stony Brook. Her research interests focus on the psychological and behavioral aspects of health and illness, particularly relating to maternal and child health. For several years, she coordinated a multi-center, longitudinal study of myopia in ethnically diverse children. This enabled her to examine the self-esteem of these participants over time, as well as to investigate the reasons that promote long term participation in clinical studies. Currently, in collaboration with intra- and inter-departmental colleagues from the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Medicine, she is conducting a study to evaluate the associations between maternal cadmium levels and pregnancy and birth outcomes. Dr. Dias is also actively involved in medical education, as a facilitator for the Medicine in Contemporary Society course and as a co-creator of ‘the Tallock Teaching Family’ that aims to enrich medical student learning throughout the curriculum. Besides research and teaching, she is also interested in improving health literacy and using research to inform policy and practice.
Academic Interests: Psychological and behavioral aspects of health and illness, Maternal and child health, Health literacy, Medical Education
Selected Publications
Scheiman M, Zhang Q, Gwiazda J, Hyman L, Harb E, Weissberg E, Weise KK, Dias L and the COMET Study Group. Visual activity and its association with myopia stabilization. Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics 2014; 34: 353-361. doi: 10. 1111/opo. 12111.
Dias L, Manny RE, Weissberg E, Fern KD and the COMET Study Group. Myopia, contact lens use and self-esteem. Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics 2013; 33: 573-580. doi: 10. 1111/opo. 12080.
Gwiazda J, Deng L, Dias L, Marsh-Tootle W. Association of education and occupation with myopia in COMET parents. Optometry and Vision Science 2011; 88: 1045-1053.
Marsh-Tootle W, Dong L, Hyman, L, Gwiazda J, Weise K, Dias L, Fern K and the COMET Group. Myopia progression in children wearing spectacles vs. switching to contact lenses. Optometry and Vision Science 2009; 86: 741-747.
Dong L, Hyman L, Manny R, Thomas J, Dias L, McLeod J, Gwiazda J and the COMET Group. Evaluating masking in a randomized double-masked clinical trial in children with myopia. Optometry and Vision Science 2006; 83: 46-52.
Dias L, Schoenfeld E, Thomas J, Baldwin C, McLeod J, Smith J, Owens R, Hyman L and the COMET Group. Reasons for high retention in pediatric clinical trials: A comparison of participant and staff responses in the Correction of Myopia Evaluation Trial (COMET). Clinical Trials 2005, 2: 443-452.
Lobel M, Dias L, Meyer B. Distress associated with prenatal screening for fetal abnormality. Journal of Behavioral Medicine 2005, 28: 65-76.
Dias L, Hyman L, Manny R, Fern K and the COMET Group. Evaluating the self-esteem of myopic children over a three year period: The COMET Experience. Optometry and Vision Science 2005, 82: 338-347.
Dias L, Manny R, Hyman L, Fern K, and the COMET Group. The relationship between myopic children’s self-esteem and ocular and demographic characteristics. Optometry and Vision Science 2002, 79: 688-696.
Dias L and Lobel M. Social comparison in medically high-risk pregnant women. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 1997, 27: 1629-1649.
