# Shaky Income, Rising Angst? Income Volatility, Psychological Health, and Biological Aging

> **NIH NIH K01** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · 2021 · $128,520

## Abstract

Americans of low socioeconomic status (SES) are less healthy than those of high SES. Understanding the
causes of these health disparities is one of the most important research questions social scientists face today.
 I propose to investigate an understudied cause of such health disparities: economic uncertainty. Income
volatility has been rising in the US, making it an increasingly important source of economic uncertainty. For 92
percent of Americans, having financial stability is more important than moving up the income ladder. The income
swings are often unpredictable, making them impossible for families to anticipate and prepare accordingly. When
income dips, low-SES families, who often lack a cushion of savings, may struggle to make ends meet.
 The prospect of this scenario of financial distress may cause anxiety, worry, and stress. The anticipation and
concern about an aversive and uncertain event can cause anxiety and worry while the uncertainty about how
one might cope if the event occurs may cause stress. According to the allostatic load framework, the stress
increases the risks of cardiovascular disease and of age-related metabolic diseases, promotes cognitive decline
and dementia, and accelerates cellular aging.
 I propose to analyze the relationship between income volatility, psychological health, and physiological aging.
This project is interdisciplinary. I am an economist and can analyse and measure income volatility. However, I
lack the skills to conceptualize and measure anxiety, worry, and stress; to understand the biological processes
through which uncertainty and stress may accelerate aging; and to know how to use biomarkers to measure
physiological aging. The K01 will provide training – under the guidance of two outstanding mentors and an expert
advisory committee – that will give me such skills. My mentors, Profs. Arthur Stone and Eileen Crimmins, are
leading experts in the areas where I need training and have experience in mentoring K01 awardees. The award
will provide protected time for me to develop this agenda. The specific aims of this proposal are to:
 1) Measure the extent of income volatility and document how it is distributed in the population.
 2) Investigate the relationship between income volatility and psychological health.
 3) Examine the relationship between income volatility and physiological aging.
 4) Study populations at risk, such as those without a buffer of savings.
 My long-term career goal is to become an expert on how economic uncertainty affects health and aging. I
am confident that this sustained period of career development and training will enable me to launch an
independent research career and emerge as a leading researcher in this area.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10127488
- **Project number:** 1K01AG066999-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Leandro Siqueira Carvalho
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $128,520
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-05-01 → 2026-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10127488

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10127488, Shaky Income, Rising Angst? Income Volatility, Psychological Health, and Biological Aging (1K01AG066999-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10127488. Licensed CC0.

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