Dr. Barbara D. Ames dissertation was on the topic of consumer education learning styles of older adults.  She has been the recipient of a number of awards, including The Amoco Award for Excellence in Teaching, CIC Academic Leadership Program Fellow, and invited participation in the National Academy of Sciences Wingspread Conference on Work and Family. Most recently, she was awarded an MSU Extension summer fellowship to work collaboratively with MSUE educators concerning financial education for older workers.

Dr. Ames' research interests have focused upon older adults, women, work, and health in a community context. She (and colleagues) has received grants from the AARP Andrus Foundation, MSU Foundation, Michigan Department of Community Health, the Michigan Agriculture Experiment Station, "Families and Communities Together," (FACT) and MSU Extension. Recent work examined the effects of rural economic restructuring on women, and a pending proposal examines the changing financial education needs of Michigan's older workers.

Dr. Ames is certified as a Family Life Educator (CFLE) through the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR). She has chaired NCFR's focus groups on Mid-life Families and Work and Family, and has served as reviewer for annual meeting proposals. She also reviews for Family Relations and Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal.