New TBM Editor-in-Chief Cheryl L. Knott Hopes to Bridge the Gap from Evidence to Impact

Rebecca Borzon; SBM Member and Media Communications Manager

Cheryl L. Knott, PhD

Incoming Translational Behavioral Medicine Editor-in-Chief Cheryl L. Knott, PhD, FAAHB, has a vision for the journal: Cultivating greater public impact by translating research discoveries into practice. Dr. Knott sees the potential for TBM to be the pinnacle journal to fill the niche of both research translation and behavioral medicine.

Her experience in community-engaged translational research speaks for itself: Professor at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement at the Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Co-Leader of the Population Science research program. She is founding Director of the Community Health Awareness, Messages, and Prevention (CHAMP) research lab. Of course, Dr. Knott has also been an involved SBM member since 2005. Her research focuses on community-engaged translational research in implementation science. She aims to find ways to increase use of evidence-based interventions in cancer control through community-based organizations.

“TBM’s path forward will emphasize the translational continuum. For research to be truly translational, it must explicate itself, i.e., it should ‘be translated.’ The journal will focus on evidence translation, extending beyond evidence development. As the field of translational research in behavioral medicine matures, there is an opportunity to incorporate both community-engaged research and its dissemination and implementation,” Dr. Knott stated.

Bridging the gap from bench to bedside will expand TBM’s readership beyond the scope of traditional academic publishing. Dr. Knott sees this as a unique opportunity to market the journal to similar disciplines like preventive medicine, psychology, and public health. These aren’t the only audiences she’d like to target— policy-makers and legislators should also read TBM so that evidence-based behavioral medicine helps inform just laws. Authors are encouraged to work with their research teams, graduate students, and community partners to develop dissemination materials for broad audiences.

“It is a time of innovation in scientific dissemination and academic publishing, as evidenced by movements toward transparency and open science,” she said. Accessibility is important to TBM’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts, as accessible research is inclusive research.

Dr. Knott’s interest in diversifying readership isn’t her only DEI initiative. She intends to conduct a thorough systematic review of TBM’s editorial board and editorial team to increase representation of minority communities. This is just the beginning—she has outlined an additional fourth component of TBM’s implications for published articles. Current TBM submissions require an implications section, which states the paper’s take-away for practice, policy, and research. Dr. Knott would add a fourth, asking for the take-away related to DEI. She recognizes that the journal’s definition and scope should specifically call for papers relevant to DEI as well.

Of course, she's quick to acknowledge that she'll be building on the work already done by TBM’s departing Editor-in-Chief Suzanne Miller, PhD. Under Dr. Miller's leadership, TBM’s impact factor has soared to an impressive 3.046, and the journal transitioned from a quarterly to monthly publication schedule. Further, TBM has led the way with special issues and virtual collections that celebrate the multi-disciplinary nature of behavioral medicine, including the widely read Diamond Anniversary Special Issue.  The special issue commemorated ten years of the journal with cutting-edge systematic reviews. Dr. Miller and her team of Senior Associate Editors were instrumental in expanding TBM’s current readership through their commitment to Transparency and Openness Promotion Guidelines (TOPS) level 1 guidelines and open science. The journal even began offering free access to the journals for legislative aides. The expanded readership increased TBM’s submission rate, as well as its rejection rate.

When Dr. Knott steps in for Dr. Miller in a few months, she'll work to ensure TBM's influence continues to grow. She stated, “Since its inception, TBM’s reach and impact have steadily increased. Given its translational focus, TBM’s target readership is not only researchers, but also those in a position of using research evidence in behavioral medicine… Other potential avenues to increase readership could include developing more policy briefs along with a dissemination channel for those to reach political constituents and decision-makers.”

As an established SBM member and TBM Associate Editor, Dr. Knott is excited to grow TBM’s readership beyond the traditional confines of publishing. We’re excited to see where she’ll lead TBM.