Iyar, a Senior Research Manager at Adelphi Values, recently defended her doctoral dissertation and will earn her PhD in Sociology from Boston College in May 2019. For her dissertation, Iyar evaluated qualitative data collected from individuals and caregivers to evaluate how youth with Barth Syndrome, a severe, rare, genetic condition, experience and manage various disease-related impacts that can affect physical, social, and emotional functioning.
Her dissertation focuses on how individuals manage and legitimize their health condition to others, the challenges associated with life planning in the context of medical uncertainty, and the strategies that individuals used most often to cope with these various impacts.
While completing her PhD, Iyar gained experience at Adelphi Values in conducting and leading qualitative and quantitative research activities centered on understanding and measuring the health-related experiences of individuals with various conditions, with a specific interest in rare disorders.