SAN FRANCISCO TREATMENT RESEARCH CENTER / Current postdoctoral fellows

Current Postdoctoral Fellows

Noval Hickman, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California, San Francisco
tel: (415) 476-8940

fax: 415-476-7053

I am interested in understanding the role of cultural and psychosocial factors in changing addictive behaviors and improving mental health among ethnically diverse people. My current research study examines the helpfulness of a culturally tailored tobacco cessation randomized trial for racially/ethnically diverse persons hospitalized for a psychiatric problem. My research aims are to answer the following questions: 1) What cultural and pshchosocial factors are associated with quitting smoking, good mental health, and retaining racial/ethnic minorities in a reasearch study? 2) What types of coping strategies are used by underserved smokers with mental illness over time? and 3) Can an intervention based on behavior change theroy help racially/ethnically diverse menthol cigarette smokers quit? I also seek to develop interventions that change multiple risk behaviors in my research career.

Selected Publications:

Okechukwu CA, Nguyen K, Hickman. Partner smoking characteristics: Associations with smoking and quitting among blue-collar workers. In Press; Am J Ind Med.

Fernandez S, Hickman N, Landrine H, Klonoff EA, Kashima K, Parekh B, Thomas K, Bruillard C, Zolezzi M, Jensen J, Weslowski Z. (2005) Cigarette advertising in magazines for Latinas, White women, and men, 1998-2002: A preliminary investigation. J Community Health, 30, 141-151.

Jensen J, Hickman N, Landrine H, Klonoff EA. Youth access to tobacco via the Internet. (2004) JAMA, 291(15), 1837.

Aung AT, Hickman N, Moolchan ET. (2003). Health and performance related reasons for wanting to quit: Gender differences among teen smokers. Subst Use Misuse 38(8), 1095-1107.

Jennifer Knapp Manuel Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California, San Francisco
tel: (415)

fax: (415)

email:

My research interest have focused on the dissemination of empirically-supported treatments and the role of social support in the treatment process. I am particularly interested in the application of motivationalinterviewing in healthcare settings with a focus on improving training and evaluation methods within this approach. I am also interested in the role of social networks in the treatment of substance use disorders and the ways in shich family members and supportive friends can be utilized to improve treatment engagement and outcomes.

Selected Publications
Foote, J., & Manuel, J.K. (2009). Adapting the CRAFT approach for use in group therapy. Journal of Behavior Analysis in Health, Sports, Fitness, and Medicine, (2)1, 114-120.

Miller, W.R. & Manuel, J.K. (2008). How large must a treatment effect be before it matters to practitioners? An estimation method and demonstration. Drug and Alcohol Review, 27(5), 524-528.

Moyers, T.B., Manuel, J.K., Wilson , P., Hendrickson, S.M.L., Talcott, W., & Durand, P. (2008). A randomized trial investigating training in motivational interviewing for behavioral health providers. Behavioral and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 36(2), 149-162.

Manuel, J.K., McCrady, B.S., Epstein, E.E., cook, S., & Tonigan, J.S. (2007). The pretreatment social networks of women with alcohol dependence. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 68(6), 871-878.

Moyers, T.B., Martin, T., Manuel, J.K., Hendrickson, S.M.L. & Miller, W.R. (2005). Assessing competence in motivational interviewing. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 28, 19-26.

Sandra Larios, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California, San Francisco
tel: (415) 502-6152

fax: (415) 502-5233

email: sandra.larios@ucsf.edu

My research interests include health disparities, HIV/AIDS, and the dissemination of effective interventions in the area of drug abuse treatment. I am currently funded by Robert Wood Johnson Substance Abuse Research Policy to examine predictors of the adoption of Evidence Based Practice in minority serving alcohol and drug treatment programs. In the upcoming year, I will be exploring innovative ways of using dissemination techniques to reduce health disparities in HIV and Hep C transmission.

Selected Publications
Larios, SE, Lozada, R, Strathde, SA, Semple, SJ, Roesch, S, Staines, H, et al., (2009) An exploration of contextual factors that influence HIV risk in female sex workers in Mexico: The social Ecological Model applied to HIV risk behaviors. AIDS Care, 21(10), 1335-1342.

Larios, SE, Davis, J, & Gallo, LC (2009). Concerns about stigma, social support, and quality of life in low-income HIV- positive Hispanics. Ethnicity and Disease, 19(1), 65-70.

Larios, SE, Ayala, GX, Arredondo, EM, Vaquero, B, & Elder, JP (2009). Development and validation of a scale to measure Latino parenting behaviors related to children's obesigenic behaviors: The Parenting for Obesity Prevention Scale. Appetite, 52(1) 166-172.

Danielle Ramo, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California, San Francisco
tel: (415) 476-7816
fax: (415) 476-7719
email: danielle.ramo@ucsf.edu

My research centers on understanding the role of lifespan development in the etiology, expression, and treatment of addictive disorders. I am interested in differences in use patterns, relapse, and treatment needs across the lifespan, from adolescence to adulthood. Currently, I seek to answer the following three research questions: 1) How does use of multiple substances (e.g., tobacco and illicit drugs) put teens at risk for more severe use and how can treatment be tailored to individuals who use multiple substances? 2) How can innovative technologies, such as Internet social networking websites, be harnessed to recruit and survey youg people on their use of addictive substances? 3) Can the Internet effectively deliver interventions to adolescents and young adults who are using tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs?

Selected Publications
Ramo, D.E., Hall, S.M., & Prochaska, J.J. (2010). Reaching Young Adult Smokers through the Internet: Comparison of Three Recruitment Mechanisms. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 12, 768-775.

Ramo, D.E., Myers, M.G., & Brown, S.A. (epub) Self-efficacy mediates the relationship between depression and length of abstinence after treatment in youth but not adults. Substance Use & Misuse. 1-22

Ramo, D.E., Grov, C., Delucchi, K., Belly, B.C., Parsons, J.T. (2010). Typology of club drug use among young adults. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 107, 119-127.

Ramo, D.E., Prochaska, J.J., & Meyers, M.G. (2010). Intentions to quit amoking among youth in substance abuse treatment. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 106, 48-51.