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Youngest PhD Student Works to Curb Teen Violence
By Diana Schulin
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Jessica Roberts Williams |
As an undergraduate, Jessica Roberts Williams pursued a dual degree in sociology and nursing from the University of Florida. "I was interested in how that understanding of society could be applied to health issues, to change and improve health," at the practical level, says Williams. Understanding the structure of society and the ways in which that structure can influence our lives--especially our health--is what propelled Williams from her initial interest in sociology into the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing (JHUSON) PhD program.
Throughout her studies at Hopkins, Williams has helped adolescents to develop healthy relationships and prevent violence. She has worked on an intervention program aimed at preventing bullying in schools and has served as a health educator for Fellowship of Lights, an organization that provides emergency shelter and services to youth who are runaways.
This February, Williams defended her PhD thesis, which dealt with identifying patterns in adolescent relational aggression and violence in dating--physical, psychological, and emotional. She will soon earn the distinction of being the youngest graduate of the PhD program at the School of Nursing.
Williams' plans for the future include teaching and continuing her research in order to develop intervention techniques that school nurses and others can use to help stem violence. "I felt strongly about going straight through to the PhD program," says Williams. "I wanted to end up working on research, developing theory, and creating new knowledge for the discipline, and so this path made sense for me."
