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Noice and Noice Receive Prestigious Award

This fourth grant from the National Institutes of Health supplements innovative research on the effects of theatre training on cognitive function in older adults.

Drs. Helga and Tony Noice (professor of psychology and adjunct faculty member in the department of communication arts and sciences, respectively) recently received their fourth award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as a supplement to their existing $121,000 grant funding innovative research on the enhancement of brain function in older adults.

For 12 years, the Noices have demonstrated that theatre training can improve older adults’ cognitive performance. They have shown that interacting with others in a dramatic situation - with its mental, emotional, and physiological aspects - activates the brain, which can slow down (or even reverse) cognitive aging effects.

This award, issued under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, will serve the purpose of stimulating the economy through support of behavioral research.

The most recent award consists of $10,920 to employ a student to work with the Noices on their program during the summers of 2009 and 2010. The 2009 recipient is Michael Bixter, an Elmhurst College psychology and philosophy major who plans on working towards an advanced degree in cognitive science. In addition to compensating Bixter as a research assistant, funds from the award are earmarked for presentation of his research results at a regional psychology conference.

For more information on the research of Drs. Helga and Tony Noice, click here and here.

The project described above was supported by Award Number R15AG032120 from the National Institute On Aging. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute On Aging or the National Institutes of Health.