Prof. Ella Cohn-Schwartz

I'm an associate professor and head of the M.A. Gerontology program in Ben-Gurion University.
My research elucidates the changes in social networks in old age and their implications for mental health. I’m also interested in the social contexts of ageism and self-perceptions of aging and the effects of the social environment on cognitive aging.
I’m is the recipient of the Alon Fellowship for excellent new faculty members, Research award of the Israel Gerontological Society, Hebrew University’s President excellence scholarship, the Emerging Scholar Paper on Aging Research Award on behalf of the Research Committee on the Sociology of Aging of the International Sociological Association and the Minerva Fellowship.

Education

2014-2018 Ph.D. School of Social Work (Gerontology), Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.
2011-2013 M.A. Neuro-Clinical Psychology, BGU.
2008-2011 B.A. Psychology and International Relations, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Academic Positions

2023-present Associate Professor, Gerontology Program, Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, BGU
2023-present Head of the Gerontology Program, Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, BGU
2025-present Co-director, the Center for Multidisciplinary Research on Aging, BGU
2019-2023 Lecturer (Assistant Professor), Gerontology Program, Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, BGU
2018-2019 Post-doctoral researcher, School of Social Work, Bar-Ilan University
2014-2019 Senior researcher, the Israel Gerontological Data Center, Hebrew University

 

The Team

Current members

חן יעקב
Chen Yaacov
PhD thesis: Formal and Informal Caregivers of Adults with Autism that Live in Supported Housing
ניצן לב
Nitzan Lev
PhD thesis: Subjective Perspectives of Bereaved Grandparents
אילונה קולושב
Ilona Kolushev
PhD thesis: The association between psychosocial factors and successful rehabilitation after a femoral neck or pelvic fracture in home versus institutional rehabilitation
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Romi Ben-David
M.A. thesis: Reciprocal Associations Between Loneliness and Internalized Homophobia Among Older LGBTQ+ Adults: A Longitudinal Study
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Michal Weiss
M.A. Thesis: Characterizing emergency department visits among older adults

Alumni

Past members:

  • Elizabeth Furman
    M.A thesis: Involvement in social groups and well-being among LGBTQ Adults aged 50+
    Submitted: 2026
  • Hadas Bar-El Parmeder
    M.A thesis: Narrative Resilience among Older Kibbutz Members Who Returned to Reside in the Evacuated Kibbutzim following October 7, 2023
    Submitted: 2025
  • Yuval Azaria
    M.A thesis: The association between coming out and depression among the LGBTQ+ community in later life
    Submitted: 2025
  • Daphna Idan
    M.A thesis: Assessing adherence to sepsis treatment guidelines according to the Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) recommendations
    Submitted: 2024
  • Roba Genaim
    M.A thesis: The association between age of diagnosis and illness perception to the utilization of health services among patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease
    Submitted: 2025
  • Shani Davidian
    M.A. Thesis: The association between place of residence and perceived quality of life and health among older gay men and lesbian women in Israel, and the mediation by the internalized homophobia and discrimination
    Submitted: 2024
  • Obaida Omari
    M.A thesis: The quality of life of informal caregivers - a comparison between Jewish, Arab and immigrants from the Former Soviet Union caregivers
    Submitted: 2024
  • Nadav Hachamov
    M.A thesis: The Influence of Age Stereotypes on Medical Assessments
    Submitted: 2023
  • Alisa Shakhamur
    M.A thesis: The association between former job’s characteristics and level of physical activity post-retirement in older adults
    Submitted: 2022
  • Naama Antler
    M.A thesis: The association between features the social environment and will to live among adults aged 75 and above
    Submitted: 2022