David B Abrams

Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Professional overview

Dr. David Abrams' career focuses on systems and social learning frameworks to inform population health enhancement. He has experience in testing theory, research design, measuring mechanisms of behavior change and outcome, and evaluating clinical trials (behavioral and pharmacological). His interests span topics from basic bio-behavioral mechanisms and clinical treatments to policy across risk factors and behaviors (e.g. tobacco/nicotine; alcohol, obesity, co-morbidity of medical and mental health), disease states (cancer; cardiovascular; HIV-AIDS), levels (biological, individual, organizational, worksite, community, global, and internet based), populations and disparities. His interests converge in the domain of implementation science to cost-efficiently inform evidence-based public health practice and policymaking.

Through transdisciplinary and translational research strategies, Dr. Abrams provides scientific leadership in tobacco control. His current focus is in strengthening global and United States tobacco and nicotine management strategies. Deaths of 1 billion smokers are estimated by 2100 caused overwhelmingly by use of combustible (smoked) tobacco products, not nicotine. Harm minimization is a key overarching systems strategy to speed the net public health benefit of emergent disruptive technologies for cleaner nicotine delivery. The goal is more rapid elimination of preventable deaths, disease burdens, and the widening gap in health disparities driven disproportionately by disparities in smoking.

Dr. Abrams was a professor and founding director of the Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine at Brown University Medical School. He then directed the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Until 2017, he was Professor of Health Behavior and Society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the founding Executive Director of the Schroeder National Institute of Tobacco Research and Policy Studies at Truth Initiative (formerly the American Legacy Foundation).

Dr. Abrams has published over 250 peer reviewed scholarly articles and been a Principal Investigator on numerous NIH grants. He is lead author of The Tobacco Dependence Treatment Handbook: A Guide to Best Practices. He has served on expert panels at NIH and National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine on Obesity, Alcohol Misuse and Ending the Tobacco Problem: A Blueprint for the Nation. He has also served on the Board of Scientific Advisors of the National Cancer Institute (NIH-NCI) and was President of the Society of Behavioral Medicine.

For a complete list of Dr. Abrams' published work, click here.

Education

BSc (Hons), Psychology and Computer Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

MS, Clinical Psychology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ

PhD, Clinical Psychology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ

Postdoctoral Fellow, Brown Medical School, Providence, RI

Honors and awards

Research Laureate Award, American Academy of Health Behavior (2014)

Joseph W. Cullen Memorial Award for Tobacco Research, American Society for Preventive Oncology (2008)

Distinguished Alumni Award: Rutgers University, The Graduate School, New Brunswick, NJ (2007)

The Musiker-Miranda Distinguished Service Award, American Psychological Association (2006)

Distinguished Service Award, Society of Behavioral Medicine (2006)

Outstanding Research Mentor Award, Society of Behavioral Medicine (2006)

Book of the Year Award: Tobacco Dependence Treatment Handbook. American Journal of Nursing (2005)

Distinguished Scientist Award, Society of Behavioral Medicine (1998)

Areas of research and study

Behavioral Science

Chronic Diseases

Evaluations

Implementation and Impact of Public Health Regulations

Implementation science

Population Health

Public Health Pedagogy

Public Health Systems

Research Design

Systems Integration

Systems Interventions

Tobacco Control

Translational science

Publications

Publications

Usefulness of physical exercise for maintaining smoking cessation in women

Behavioral medicine strategies for medical patients

Communication skills training, communication skills training with family and cognitive behavioral mood management training for alcoholics

Reducing the risk of cancer through worksite intervention

A comparative evaluation of a restrictive smoking policy in a general hospital

Debunking Myths About Self-Quitting: Evidence From 10 Prospective Studies of Persons Who Attempt to Quit Smoking by Themselves

Effects of behavioral skills training and schedule of nicotine gum administration on smoking cessation

Evaluating worksite smoking policies. Methodologic issues

Irrational beliefs, urges to drink and drinking among alcoholics

Reactivity to high risk situations and smoking cessation outcome.

Reasons for Smoking and Severity of Residual Nicotine Withdrawal Symptoms When Using Nicotine Chewing Gum

Responses to smoking-related stimuli and early relapse to smoking

Treating alcohol dependence

Cancer, stress and personality: a correlational investigation of life-events, repression-sensitization and locus of control

Nicotine dependence as a predictor of treatment failure in a worksite smoking cessation protocol

Properties of saliva cotinine in young adult light smokers

Carey, K. B., & Abrams, D. B. (n.d.).

Publication year

1988

Journal title

American journal of public health

Volume

78

Issue

7

Page(s)

842-843

10.2105/AJPH.78.7.842

Abstract

Abstract

The half-life of saliva cotinine and its accuracy at detecting light or intermittent smoking were examined. Five subjects provided daily saliva samples for 23 days and quit smoking on day 4. An average of 2.8 days was required for saliva cotinine to drop below the cutoff for classification as a smoker. All smokers smoked intermittently at various times after day 9. In most cases the smoking of one or two cigarettes was detected in the saliva sample on subsequent days. Saliva cotinine was sensitive to low rates of smoking and to intermittent smoking.

Psychophysiologic reactivity and smoking

Reactivity to smoking cues and relapse: Two studies of discriminant validity

Relevance of Cue Reactivity to Understanding Alcohol and Smoking Relapse

Social learning approaches to alcohol relapse: Selected illustrations and implications

A step-care approach to smoking cessation

Alcohol and self-disclosure: Analyses of interpersonal behavior in male and female social drinkers

Behavioral community psychology and the prevention of heart disease: Community applications of the PHHP

Behavioral medicine in industry: Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular risk-factor reduction in the medical setting: A behavioral step-care approach