Lisa Folkesson
PhD Student
I am a PhD candidate in psychology at the Department of Psychology, Stockholm University and CHESS, Centre for Health Equity Studies, Stockholm university/ Karolinska Institute. During 2009-2010 I have planned and coordinated a data collection within the interdisciplinary research project Stress and Support in Schools (triSSS), a wide-ranging study including survey data, interviews and saliva samples from 14-16 year olds in two Stockholm schools. My thesis concern the psychobiological parts of the study, aiming at measuring cortisol in boys and girls and delineating roles of psychological, psychosocial and physiological factors, in the creation of health among adolescent girls and boys.
Focus of the thesis will be on salivary cortisol as a measure of stress in girls and boys, as well as connections to specific health problems and psychosocial mechanisms of importance for health. Gender specific patterns will be explored along with factors such as self esteem, self reported stress, self reported wellbeing and psychological/somatic health problems, in relation to biomarkers of stress. Validation of self-reported stress is yet another aim, where the linkages to hormonal reactions will be investigated.
Projects
The school's impact on young people's mental and psychosomatic health, funded by the Research Council for Working Life and Social Research, FAS, conducted with main supervisor Petra Lindfors, Department of Psychology, SU, along with co-supervisor and project manager Viveca Östberg, CHESS, SU/KI.
Presentations
Gender specific linkages between stress, self-esteem and self reported health in two Stockholm schools. Oral presentation at doctoral student public health research workshop (SWE-FI) at University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland, 2010.
Folkesson, L., Lindfors, P., & Östberg, V. Economic vulnerability and adolescent health. Family finances and health functioning in girls and boys. Oral presentation at the 11th International Congress of Behavioral Medicine in Washington, DC, USA, 4-7 August, 2010.
Folkesson, L., Lindfors, P., & Östberg, V. Economic vulnerability and adolescent health. Family finances and health functioning in girls and boys. Poster presentation at the Stress research kongress in Umeå, Sweden, 25-26 May 2009.
Economic vulnerability and adolescent health. Fragile family finances and self reported health symptoms among Swedish adolescents. Oral presentation at doctoral student public health research workshop (SWE-FI) at Centre for health Equity Studies, CHESS, Stockholm, Sweden, 2009.
Gender- and socioeconomic health inequalities- the prevalence of psychosomatic symptoms among Swedish adolescents. Oral presentation at Doctoral student public health research workshop (SWE-DAN) at Centre for health Equity Studies, CHESS, Stockholm, Sweden, 2008.
Publications
Folkesson, L., Lindfors, P., & Östberg, V. Economic vulnerability and adolescent health. Family finances and health functioniong symptoms in girls and boys. Submitted for publication.
Conference publications
Folkes, L., Lindfors, P., & Östberg, V. (2010). Economic vulnerability and adolescent health. Family finances and health functioniong symptoms in girls and boys. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 2010 Abstract Book.
Miscellaneous
Shared junior presidency of CHESS FAS-funded Graduate School "Human society as a life-long determinant of health", 2010.
Chair of the Department of Psychology PhD Student Council, 2009.
Vice-Chairman, Department of Psychology PhD Student Council, 2008.
Member of Svensk Beteendemedicinsk Förening, SBF.
