Over the past 20 years, the Louisville Center has promoted international research, knowledge dissemination, and technology transfer within PIRE by engaging in cross-cultural project work and developing regional, national, and international networks of research partners, support services, funding sources, and influential contacts. As a result of studies conducted in the U.S., Peru, Brazil, Thailand, Afghanistan, Kenya, and Liberia, the Center has developed international expertise, multinational research collaborations, and resources relating to cross-cultural and transnational research. The Center has developed expertise in social policy experimental design, selection of appropriate prevention programs and methodology for international settings, development of instruments that are culturally appropriate, and advanced multivariate analyses.
Dr. Melissa Abadi, as Louisville’s current Center Director, continues to expand local and statewide partnerships and enhance cross-site collaboration across PIRE centers. She encourages all projects, interventions, and evaluations to focus on generalizability and replicability. In 2020, as our world changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated social and political changes, the goal of our work is to always be focused on health equity and inclusivity of the most vulnerable populations. Our current projects focus on a variety of populations including U.S. Veterans, Medicare and Medicaid users, intellectually and developmentally disabled adults living in group homes, youth and young adult substance users, and rural and urban populations.
