Christina Varghese and Dr. Brittany Hearne at a Social Science Conference

Author: Christina Varghese | Major: Sociology

My name is Christina Varghese, and I am a sociology major in Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences on a pre-med track. This semester, Spring 2022, I worked under Dr. Brittany Hearne from the Sociology department to complete my Honors College thesis research. The aim of my research was to explore how perceived threat toward COVID-19 differs across the intersections of age with race/ethnicity and gender. This research is useful for identifying subgroups which are more likely to perceive COVID-19 as a major threat to population and personal health. Furthermore, identifying these groups creates a basis to further research and care for the associated physical and mental health needs of each subgroup in current and future crises.

I decided on this topic of research based on the combination of my personal interests and current events. As an aspiring doctor majoring in sociology, I wanted to focus my research in the field of medical sociology. As I began to narrow down my research topic in early 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic was an obvious area where further research was needed. Dr. Hearne from the Sociology department agreed to be my research mentor and help me narrow down a research question. Because of Dr. Hearne’s interest in medical sociology, I had already discussed my vague research plans with her when taking her Social Research class my sophomore year of college. I kept in touch with her after the class and reached out again when it came time to find my thesis advisor. With Dr. Hearne’s help, I narrowed down my topic to perceived threat of COVID-19.

I began my research in earnest in Fall 2021. I selected and familiarized myself with my dataset; found, read, and organized previous literature related to my topic, and learned to code in statical analysis software.

My research work in the Spring 2022 semester was largely focused on writing. Most of the outside research was complete and the code was ready for statistical analyses. I just needed to interpret the statistical results and draft the rest of my paper. Before interpreting the results and working on the results section, I studied how logistical regression was calculated and how to read and interpret its results, using resources provided by Dr. Hearne. Once I had a grasp on the statistics model, Dr. Hearne used SAS, a statistical analysis software, to estimate the frequency tables and logistic regressions using the code which we prepared in Fall 2021. From the SAS outputs, I created tables of the relevant data and drafted the data and results section of my research, which relayed the detailed the statistical findings of the analyses using and the process by which those numbers were estimated. Dr. Hearne reviewed and critiqued the draft several times to suggest better formatting or more accurate wordings. I then went back to finalize my literature review, to make sure it flowed smoothly with the rest of the work and contained all relevant information.

With the literature review, data, and results sections all complete, I moved on to drafting the discussion and conclusion of my paper. This section required synthesizing all my previous work into a succinct explanation of my results and their relevance. Following guidelines provided by Dr. Hearne, I examined each of the relevant estimates and provided possible explanations for each result based on other research in the field. Once Dr. Hearne had proofread and approved my discussion and conclusion, I assembled the final paper from all the separate drafts and tables. After both Dr. Hearne and I reread and edited the final draft, I sent the completed paper to my honors thesis committee.

During this last stretch of my research process, the biggest struggle was endurance and time management. It was difficult at times to focus and prioritize my thesis work as I finished my final semester of college. I am incredibly fortunate that my mentor Dr. Hearne was patient and encouraging throughout the process. She created a timeline for the semester, breaking down when each section draft would need to be completed, but she was flexible and understanding even when things did not go as planned. I believe that being able to work with a mentor whose organization and expectations complemented my own methods was the most helpful part of this thesis process.

The process of research gave me deeper insight into the design of academic papers and how the data, research question, and context can affect the way the results are interpreted. As I graduate and work toward a career in medicine, I expect there will be many academic papers in my future. The wisdom I have gained by writing my own research paper will equip me to critically read and understand the nuances of academic research and writing.