Members in the News
Members in the News
If you are an SBM member and would like to have your news, award announcement, accomplishment, or other activity included in the Members in the News section, please email the national office at info@sbm.org.
Megan Spokas, PhD
Dr. Spokas wrote an op-ed for the The Philadelphia Citizen on how depression and anxiety are on the rise due to COVID-19, and weighs in on how limited mental health services must be increased.
Suzanne Miller, PhD; Alan Delamater, PhD
April 18, 2020
Dr. Miller and Dr. Delamater wrote an op-ed for The New Jersey Star-Ledger on how the best tactic to get people to think beyond their own risk is to use psychology.
Monica Wang, ScD, MS
April 11, 2020
Ms. Wang wrote an op-ed on the racial and ethnic disparities behind the morbidity rate of COVID-19.
Monica Wang, ScD, MS
April 6, 2020
Ms. Wang wrote an op-ed on the current COVID-19 pandemic through a health equity lens.
Robert Kaplan, PhD
April 3, 2020
Dr. Kaplan wrote an op-ed for The Mercury News on how rushing COVID-19 drug approval will increase risk.
Lynn Bufka, PhD
March 25, 2020
Dr. Bufka discussed the effects of social isolation due to COVID-19 on Texas Public Radio's "The Source."
Kelly Doran, MD
March 18, 2020
Dr. Doran was interviewed by Politico for a piece on how the coronavirus disproportionately affects New York's homeless population.
Kate Hoerster, PhD, MPH; Dori Rosenberg, PhD, MPH
March 17, 2020
Dr. Hoerster and Dr. Rosenberg wrote an op-ed for The Seattle Times promoting the benefits of physical health during the coronavirus outbreak.
E. Amy Janke, PhD
February 14, 2018
Dr. Janke was interviewed by Reuters Health about SBM's policy brief calling for better access to psychosocial care for people with persistent pain.
Tracy Trevorrow, PhD
January 2, 2018
Dr. Trevorrow's research on teen sleep and a related SBM policy brief calling for later school start times were featured in a segment by KITV.
James F. Sallis, PhD
January 1, 2018
Dr. Sallis wrote a piece for The Conversation about how driverless cars are coming, and it's up to us whether they help or hurt our health.
Gary G. Bennett, PhD
November 14, 2017
Dr. Bennett had a column in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about how consumers should evaluate weight loss apps, especially as the holiday season approaches.
Kevin S. Masters, PhD
October 5, 2017
Dr. Masters was interviewed by The Atlantic for a piece about the medical outcomes of thoughts and prayers. The piece followed the deadly gun attack in Las Vegas, after which many politicians and others offered "thoughts and prayers."
Claudio R. Nigg, PhD
August 31, 2017
Dr. Nigg was interviewed about Hawaiians' health for this NPR piece about the use of prescriptions in the island state.
James F. Sallis Jr., PhD
August 17, 2017
Dr. Sallis provided comments on walkability and liveability inequality in this piece from The Fifth Estate about Melbourne, Australia, winning the Economist Intelligence Unit’s most liveable city title.
Sherry Pagoto, PhD, and June K. Robinson, MD
July 28, 2017
Drs. Pagoto and Robinson penned a Stat op-ed warning against a new drug that "tans" the skin in much the same way the sun does. They wrote, in part, "We worry that people who routinely protect themselves from the sun might also buy into the idea that a chemical will help them tan — and the tan would protect them from skin cancer. That would be a public health loss if a false sense of security caused them to ease up on using sunscreen and wearing protective clothing, resulting in an unintended increase in skin cancer risk."
James F. Sallis Jr., PhD
Dr. Sallis wrote a San Diego Union-Tribune letter to the editor explaining how the proposed Republican federal healthcare reform bill will make things worse for many Americans.
Rena R. Wing, PhD
May 25, 2017
Dr. Wing was quoted in Time magazine's cover story about the latest research on dieting and weight loss, which shows there is no one size fits all solution.
Katherine D. Hoerster, PhD, MPH
May 12, 2017
Dr. Hoerster penned an op-ed in The Seattle Times about breastfeeding research and realities.
Bradley Appelhans, PhD
March 21, 2017
Vending machine research performed by Dr. Appelhans and presented at SBM's 2017 Annual Meeting was featured on NPR. The research showed that making people wait longer for unhealthy food at vending machines got them to choose healthier food over time.
Noel T. Brewer, PhD
December 5, 2016
Dr. Brewer was interviewed on NPR about how doctors should talk to parents about HPV vaccination for their children.
James F. Sallis Jr., PhD
November 25, 2016
Dr. Sallis was featured in a piece by The West Australian about planning cities that encourage physical activity and "active transport." Dr. Sallis met with city officials in Perth, Australia, to discuss ways they can make their city more active.
Belinda Borrelli, PhD; Erin M. Tooley, PhD; Andrew M. Busch, PhD; and Shira Dunsiger, PhD
September 28, 2016
Research by Drs. Borrelli, Tooley, Busch and Dunsiger showed parents who smoke are more likely to quit with smoking cessation counseling following a "teachable moment," such as witnessing their child experience an asthma attack. Their work was featured in Science Daily and BU Research.
Jill E. Bormann, PhD, RN, FAAN
September 21, 2016
Dr. Bormann is quoted in the August 2016 issue of the Oprah Magazine on the practice of Mantram Repetition, a portable, mindful-spiritual strategy for symptom management.
John M. Jakicic, PhD
September 12, 2016
Dr. Jakicic is quoted in a Time magazine cover story about the health benefits of exercise and the potential for exercise to be "prescribed."
Elliot J. Coups, PhD, and Jerod L. Stapleton, PhD
August 2, 2016
Research by Drs. Coups and Stapleton showed indoor tanning rates among New Jersey teens remained stable after a state law banned tanning for those under age 17. Their work was featured by NJTV News and Science Daily.
Michelle L. Segar, PhD, MPH, MS
May 13, 2016
Dr. Segar was featured in a Huffington Post article about how to exercise regularly and consistently. The article outlined four steps, based on Dr. Segar’s research, to setting attainable fitness goals.
Danielle E. Schoffman, PhD; Brie Turner-McGrievy, PhD, RD; and Alicia A. Dahl, MS
May 12, 2016
Research by Dr. Schoffman, Dr. Turner-McGrievy, and Ms. Dahl shows entrees at fast-casual restaurants like Chipotle have more calories than entrees at traditional fast food restaurants like McDonalds, despite public opinion to the contrary. The research has made the rounds in popular press including Cosmopolitan and Women's Health.
Jeffrey T. Parsons, PhD
April 5, 2016
Dr. Parsons' research about the high levels of adherence among gay men prescribed an HIV prevention drug was presented at SBM's 2016 Annual Meeting and featured in a Reuters Health article. SBM member Kathy J. Goggin, PhD, is also featured in the article.
Amanda E. Staiano, PhD, MPP
April 2016
Dr. Staiano's research about helping young children more readily eat their vegetables was presented at SBM's 2016 Annual Meeting and featured in news outlets such as The Advocate and Reuters Health. The reserach showed that having young chilren watch a video of other young children eating green pepper made them more likely to eat green pepper themselves in the future.
Lucas Carr, PhD
March 17, 2016
Dr. Carr was featured in an NPR article about the benefits of standing desks.
Karl E. Minges, MPH
January 2016
Mr. Minges' work about the impact of school-based standing desk interventions on sedentary behavior and physical activity, health-related outcomes, and academic and behavioral outcomes in school-aged children published in Pediatrics was featured by media outlets including Reuters and HealthDay.
Eric S. Kim, PhD
December 2015 and January 2016
Dr. Kim's work about how volunteering is associated with increased use of preventive health care screenings and fewer hospitalizations was featured by several media outlets, including The Atlantic, The Guardian, and The Huffington Post.
Danielle Arigo, PhD
November 16, 2015
Dr. Arigo's collaborative work on risk for binge eating in college was featured by Yahoo News and Allure magazine, and she was interviewed by RadioMD about her recent digital health program to promote physical activity among women.
Linda E. Carlson, BSc, PhD
September 19 and October 12, 2015
Dr. Carlson appeared an episode of the WHYY podcast, Radio Times, to talk about the science and practice of meditation, and was featured in a Greatist article about how to cope with noise in the workplace.
Joanna Buscemi, PhD
September 30, 2015
Dr. Buscemi was featured in a Chicago Tribune article about an elementary school that has added physical activity breaks to the school day. In the article, Buscemi endorses the breaks and explains research evidence (as outlined in a 2014 SBM health policy brief) shows that physical activity can improve students' academic achievement.
Suzanne M. Miller, PhD, and Michael A. Diefenbach, PhD
September 21, 2015
Drs. Miller and Diefenbach are quoted in a Wall Street Journal article about a study analyzing how men and women approach prostate and breast cancer diagnoses and treatments in social media posts. The study found men are more analytical while women are more emotional. Drs. Miller and Diefenbach questioned the reliability of the study sample.
John M. Salsman, PhD, and Heather S. Jim, PhD
August 10, 2015
Drs. Salsman and Jim were featured in a Reuters Health article showcasing their studies about the impact of patient spirituality on cancer care. The article says, “Cancer patients who report more religiousness or spirituality may also experience fewer physical symptoms of cancer and treatment and more social connection, several new papers suggest. The new analyses reviewed previous studies of spirituality involving more than 44,000 cancer patients altogether. The studies varied in many ways, but religion and spirituality were associated with better health regardless of specific religion or set of spiritual beliefs.”
Sherry L. Pagoto, PhD
August 2015
Dr. Pagoto was featured in a Allure magazine feature about the dangers of indoor tanning and the role colleges play. "Indoor tanning is the prime suspect behind the alarming rise in melanoma rates among young people," the article's sub-headline proclaims. "So why do so many colleges let their students tan for free right on or near campus?"
Nora B. Henrikson, PhD, MPH
May 31 and June 1, 2015
Research by Dr. Henrikson shows that training physicians in communication skills may not make it any easier for them to convince vaccine-resistant parents to inoculate their babies. Her research was featured by KUOW, Reuters, and NPR.
Deborah J. Ossip, PhD
March 2, 2015
Dr. Ossip has been elected 2016 president of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. The international society coordinates and advances research related to nicotine and tobacco from molecular to societal levels, and it publishes the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research. Dr. Ossip will serve as president-elect from 2015-16 to transition to her one-year term as president. Her term will be followed by one additional year as past-president to maintain seamless organizational leadership. Read more.
Bonnie Spring, PhD, ABPP, Arlen C. Moller, PhD, and Michael J. Coons, MA
January 31, 2015
A piece published in The Economist featured research co-authored by Drs. Spring and Moller as well as by Mr. Coons. Their research studied the impact online communities have on individuals’ weight loss. Read the article.
Jennifer L. Huberty, PhD
January 22, 2015
Dr. Huberty was featured in Arizona State University News for a study she is currently conducting on the impact of yoga on post-traumatic stress disorder. Read the article.
Jiun-Hau Huang, SM, ScD
December 23, 2015
Dr. Huang’s research, showing that pre-college bullying is linked with health-related quality of life in college, was featured on Reuters Health. Read the article.
Patricia Chalela, DrPH, and Amelie G. Ramirez, MPH, DrPH
November 10 and 11, 2014
The abstract “Empowering Latina Breast Cancer Patients to Make Informed Decisions about Clinical Trials: A Multi-Communication Approach,” was presented at the American Association for Cancer Research cancer health disparities conference held in San Antonio, TX, from November 9-12, 2014. An article about the abstract was featured in the San Antonio Express News and Houston Chronicle. Another article was featured on Health Canal and Medical Xpress.
Sherry L. Pagoto, PhD
October 29, 2014
Dr. Pagoto's research on tanning beds on college campuses appeared in NPR health news and on Good Morning America. "Tobacco and alcohol are not allowable purchases on many campuses," Pagoto says in the piece, "We would encourage colleges to take that one step further and add tanning to that list." Read the full article and watch the clip.
Kate Wolin, ScD
October 6, 2014
Dr. Wolin appeared on The Dr. Oz Show for a segment about slashing cancer risk. She and Oz discussed the effects of a new test that gives patients an evidence-based way to assess their own individual cancer risk. Watch the video.
Felix A. Okah, MD, MS, FAAP
September 23 and 26, 2014
A study by Dr. Okah found that living in a zip code with more violence increases the chances of having a premature or low birth weight baby. Dr. Okah’s work was featured in a Kansas City Fox 4 news segment and in a UMKC Today article.
Robin M. Lally, PhD, MS, BA, RN, AOCN
September 25, 2014
Dr. Lally’s work involves American Cancer Society-funded development and testing of an Internet-based, self-guided psychoeducational intervention called CaringGuidance: After Breast Cancer Diagnosis. It is aimed at reducing distress and facilitating coping and psychological adjustment among women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Her work was featured in the UB Reporter. Read the article.
Redford B. Williams Jr., MD
August 20, 2014
Dr. Williams has received the International Society of Behavioral Medicine’s (ISBM) 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award. It is the highest honor bestowed by ISBM.
Dr. Williams, an SBM fellow and the society's president from 1983-84, was given the award August 20 during ISBM’s 13th International Congress of Behavioral Medicine in Groningen, The Netherlands. Dr. Williams was recognized for “outstanding contributions to behavioral medicine throughout his whole career,” according to ISBM.
“Dr. Williams’ research is outstanding and very well acknowledged in the field of behavioral medicine,” ISBM President Joost Dekker said in a statement, according to The Herald-Sun.
Dr. Williams is an author or co-author of 10 books and more than 200 articles in peer-reviewed journals. He is also an international authority on how hostility and anger contribute to coronary heart disease and other life-threatening illnesses, according to The Herald-Sun. Dr. Williams received SBM’s Distinguished Scientist Award in 1992. He is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, where he also is director of the Behavioral Medicine Research Center.
Edward McAuley, PhD, and Neha Gothe, PhD
August 20, 2014
Drs. McAuley and Gothe studied how yoga impacts brain functioning. Their results, which show yoga practitioners improve working memory capacity, were featured on TIME magazine's website. Read the article.
Bonnie Spring, PhD, ABPP
August 1, 2014
Dr. Spring's study showing adults who make healthier choices can reduce heart disease risk was published in Circulation and was profiled by The Nation's Health. The study dismissed the idea that once health damage is done it's too late to reverse it. Read the article.
David E. Conroy, PhD
May 6, 2014
Dr. Conroy's research at Penn State on fitness apps and their motivational techniques was published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine and was featured on NPR. Read the article.
Sherry L. Pagoto, PhD
May 6, 2014
Dr. Pagoto's research at University of Massachusetts Medical School on how social media may change health habits was featured on Boston's local news channel WCVB. Watch the clip.
Karina W. Davidson, PhD
February 5, 2014
Dr. Davidson was appointed to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) as an expert in prevention and primary care. The new additions to the task force were appointed by the director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with guidance from task force leadership. Appointees will serve four-year terms.
David B. Abrams, PhD
November 19, 2013
On March 16, 2014, at the American Academy of Health Behavior (AAHB) Annual Meeting, Dr. Abrams will be named the 2014 AAHB Research Laureate. The research laureate is the highest award bestowed by the academy, and honors an individual who has made a significant and enduring contribution to health behavior research. Dr. Abrams provides scientific leadership in the general areas of health promotion and disease prevention—with a focus on tobacco control—by embracing transdisciplinary research strategies to put what we know into widespread practice and policy. As the 13th recipient of the Research Laureate Award, Dr. Abrams joins the most elite group of health behavior researchers in the nation.
Abby C. King, PhD
November 19, 2013
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) will include Dr. King’s research on “Virtual Advisors for Physical Activity Promotion in Underserved Communities” in a spring 2014 campaign highlighting health equity research underway at AAMC member institutions nationwide. As part of this initiative, the AAMC invited 10 principal investigators to submit short snapshot videos describing their newly-funded research, its goals, and its potential impact on community health and health inequities. These projects were selected to represent research on a wide array of health outcomes and populations, and to demonstrate how research at every stage—from fundamental discovery science to community-based participatory research—contributes to closing or narrowing gaps in heath and health care. The Health Equity Research Snapshot will launch in March 2014 across multiple AAMC communication channels, and it will feature prominently on AAMC’s Health Equity Research and Policy Web page.
Karen Glanz, PhD, MPH; Bernadette Mazurek Melnyk, PhD, RN, FNAP, FAANP, FAAN; and Peter Salovey, PhD
October 21, 2013
Drs. Glanz, Melnyk, and Salovey were among the 70 new people elected into the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Election to the IOM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine, and it recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. See the full list of new inductees in the IOM news release.
Jerry M. Suls, PhD
October 20, 2013
Dr. Suls has been appointed senior scientist in the Behavioral Research Program (BRP), an extramural program at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) which recently reorganized into six scientific branches: the Basic Biobehavioral and Psychological Sciences Branch; the Health Behaviors Research Branch; the Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch; the Process of Care Research Branch; the Science of Research and Technology Branch; and the Tobacco Control Research Branch. Suls will assist program staff and BRP Associate Director William Klein in the development of new initiatives.
“Dr. Suls’ exemplary accomplishments and experience as a researcher, investigator, faculty member, editor, and reviewer position him well to help us nurture new areas of research at the interface of behavioral science and cancer,” Klein said. “We will be taking advantage of this background to further elucidate the behavioral and psychosocial antecedents and consequences of cancer outcomes.”