Dr. Song is an Associate Professor at the OHSU School of Nursing.  She conducts behavioral and epidemiological research in family context, and focuses her research on the influence of health behaviors (particularly physical activity) on the prevention and management of obesity, cardiometabolic diseases, and attention- deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).  

Her most recent investigations are divided between two critical, inter-related areas of research. In the first area, she is investigating to what degree and by what mechanisms adult caregivers (particularly, grandparent-caregivers) influence the health behaviors and cardiometabolic health risk in children. Her research in this field is targeting an important yet largely neglected area of study given that there has been a recent steady increase in co-residing grandparents who act as caregivers for their grandchildren. This line of research may help to address health disparities, given that grandparent-caregiving is prevalent in families of lower socioeconomic status and among racial and ethnic minorities.

In the second area, she is looking at the associations among physical activity, ADHD, and obesity. Studies show that individuals with ADHD have high rates of obesity, but this association seems paradoxical since individuals with ADHD are thought to be more physically active as the result of hyperactivity. To explore this paradox, her team is currently investigating the underlying mechanisms in the associations between ADHD and obesity and whether physical activity plays a role in that association.