Angela Bryan | |
---|---|
Occupation | Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience |
Awards | 2006 APA Award for Distinguished Scientific Early Career Contribution to Psychology (Health Psychology) |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | UCLA (BA) Arizona State University (MA, PhD) |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of Colorado Boulder |
Angela Denise Bryan is a social psychologist known for her research on HIV/STD prevention,healthy eating habits, [1] and use of legalized cannabis. [2] [3] [4] She is Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder [5] where she co-directs the Center for Health and Neuroscience,Genes,and Environment. [6]
Bryan received the 2006 American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Scientific Early Career Contribution to Psychology [7] for her studies in health psychology that used "social psychology theory to understand dynamics of unhealthy behavior and [ ] used that knowledge to design,implement,and evaluate effective,theory-based interventions to change unhealthy behavior." [8]
Bryan was born at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta,Georgia in 1970. [9] She completed her bachelor's degree at the University of California,Los Angeles in 1992,graduating with highest honors in psychology. At UCLA,Bryan's Interests in the social psychology of health behavior and the social implications of condom use,in particular,were sparked by her honors advisor,Barry Collins. [9]
Bryan continued her education at Arizona State University where she completed her PhD in social psychology with a quantitative emphasis in 1997. Bryan’s doctoral research on the design,implementation,and evaluation of an intervention aimed at promoting condom use among college women was funded by a National Science Foundation fellowship. [9] Her dissertation was titled "Psychosocial and contextual determinants of condom use among incarcerated adolescents" [10] and completed under the supervision of Leona Aiken. [11] Bryan continued her training as a postdoctoral research associate at Center for HIV/Health Intervention and Promotion (CHIP) in the Department of Psychology at the University of Connecticut. [12]
Bryan joined the faculty of the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1999,where she expanded her research program to include studies of physical exercise. [9] She is a member of the University of Colorado Cancer Center, [13] a faculty fellow in the Institute of Cognitive Science at University of Colorado at Boulder and a member of the faculty of the Anschutz School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Denver. [6]
Bryan's work on alcohol use and HIV risk has been funded through grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. [14] Her work on exercise,DNA methylation,and cancer risk has been funded by the National Cancer Institute. [15] [16] Her work on anti-inflammatory properties of cannabis is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. [17]
Bryan's research applies a biopsychosocial model of health behavior to a variety of topics including HIV/STD prevention,cannabis use,and exercise. In her HIV and STD prevention work,she has examined the influence of a situational variable—alcohol use during sexual activity—as a factor impacting condom use among at-risk young people. In an initial study,Bryan and her colleagues found that alcohol use was unrelated to condom use in males but was strongly and negatively associated with condom use among females. [18] Bryan was interested in testing a higher risk population and decided to focus on criminally involved adolescents. [19] In comparison to other adolescents in the general population,adolescents involved with the criminal justice system tend to be younger at the age of first sexual intercourse,and have more sex partners,lower rates of condom use,and higher rates of unintended pregnancy,HIV,and STDs. [9] In this high-risk population,Bryan and her colleagues failed to find evidence that alcohol use influenced adolescents' intentions,attitudes,and behaviors around condom use. [19]
Another line of work has explored effects of cannabis on motor functions. [20] Legalization of cannabis has led to increased rates of driving under the influence. Although numerous studies indicate that cannabis impairs psychomotor and neurocognitive functions that can affect driving ability,determination of driving risk is complicated by the extent to which cannabis users develop tolerance to THC. In her study,Bryan and her colleagues used a mobile app to assess the psychomotor and cognitive functioning of frequent cannabis users immediately and one hour after engaging in cannabis use. They found clear evidence of psychomotor impairments immediately after cannabis use,but found that the impairments decreased significantly one hour after use. [20]
Bryan's research on cannabis is not easily obtainable because Marijuana remains fully illegal at the federal level,and strict federal access policies tie the hands of researchers [2] Bryan hopes to start filling the research gap on the topic as it gains popularity. [21] In order for Bryan to get much needed data on the topic,she is not able to be present during participants consumption. The only way she can study effects is by using a mobile lab and asking participants to come outside to the van for tests of how its active ingredients,called cannabinoids,have affected them. [2] The van is helping to facilitate several studies;among them are the effects of various cannabis products on anxiety,pain,inflammation,sleep,health and mood. [4] Bryan hopes to study cannabis and metabolism,including its effects on the body's response to insulin. [4]
In other notable work, [22] Bryan and her collaborators surveyed cannabis users living in states with full legal access to find out whether cannabis use shortly before and/or after exercise affects enjoyment of and motivation to exercise. [23] The researchers were specifically interested in comparing users who consumed cannabis shortly before or after exercise (co-users) with those who did not. They designed a simple questionnaire that asked people general questions about themselves,their marijuana use,and working out. Almost 82% of participants reported that they used cannabis around the time of their workouts. These individuals tended to be younger and more often male than those who did not use marijuana in conjunction with exercise. After controlling for these differences,co-users reported engaging in more minutes of exercise per week than non-users,while also reporting greater enjoyment of exercise and increased motivation to exercise. [23] The study did not look at which kind of cannabis (edibles,smoked flower,etc.) people use alongside exercise,however,more research is already in the works at CU Boulder,comparing the activity levels of older adults who use cannabis with those who do not. [21]
Bryan's interest in life-style research led her into studies of the effects incentives might have on healthy eating. [24] [25] Her team had participants record their stress levels and the number of fruit and vegetable servings they ate each day for three weeks. One group received a dollar each time they ate a serving of fruit or vegetables,the other did not. On days when subjects reported feeling stressed,those who were being paid maintained their intake while those who weren’t ate fewer servings of fruits and vegetables. Participants who received cash incentives maintained their daily fruit and vegetable consumption,even when stressed. Her studies suggest that incentives may be a novel method for buffering against the negative effect of daily stress on eating a healthy diet. [26]
Substance abuse,also known as drug abuse,is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health,medical and criminal justice contexts. In some cases,criminal or anti-social behaviour occurs when the person is under the influence of a drug,and long-term personality changes in individuals may also occur. In addition to possible physical,social,and psychological harm,the use of some drugs may also lead to criminal penalties,although these vary widely depending on the local jurisdiction.
Harm reduction,or harm minimization,refers to a range of public health policies designed to lessen the negative social and/or physical consequences associated with various human behaviors,both legal and illegal. Harm reduction is used to decrease negative consequences of recreational drug use and sexual activity without requiring abstinence,recognizing that those unable or unwilling to stop can still make positive change to protect themselves and others.
The effects of cannabis are caused by chemical compounds in the cannabis plant,including 113 different cannabinoids such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and 120 terpenes,which allow its drug to have various psychological and physiological effects on the human body. Different plants of the genus Cannabis contain different and often unpredictable concentrations of THC and other cannabinoids and hundreds of other molecules that have a pharmacological effect,so that the final net effect cannot reliably be foreseen.
Abstinence-only sex education is a form of sex education that teaches not having sex outside of marriage. It often excludes other types of sexual and reproductive health education,such as birth control and safe sex. Comprehensive sex education,by contrast,covers the use of birth control and sexual abstinence.
Adolescent health,or youth health,is the range of approaches to preventing,detecting or treating young people's health and well-being.
The health action process approach (HAPA) is a psychological theory of health behavior change,developed by Ralf Schwarzer,Professor of Psychology at the Freie University Berlin of Berlin,Germany and SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities,Wroclaw,Poland,first published in 1992.
The long-term effects of cannabis have been the subject of ongoing debate. Because cannabis is illegal in most countries,clinical research presents a challenge and there is limited evidence from which to draw conclusions. In 2017,the U.S. National Academies of Sciences,Engineering,and Medicine issued a report summarizing much of the published literature on health effects of cannabis,into categories regarded as conclusive,substantial,moderate,limited and of no or insufficient evidence to support an association with a particular outcome.
Cannabis use disorder (CUD),also known as cannabis addiction or marijuana addiction,is defined in the fifth revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) and ICD-10 as the continued use of cannabis despite clinically significant impairment.
HIV prevention refers to practices that aim to prevent the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV prevention practices may be undertaken by individuals to protect their own health and the health of those in their community,or may be instituted by governments and community-based organizations as public health policies.
Adolescent sexuality in Canada is not as well documented as adolescent sexuality in the United States;despite the proximity of the two nations,Canada has its own unique culture and generalizations about Canadian adolescent sexuality based on American research can be misleading. Because of this,several surveys and studies have been conducted which acquired information on Canadian adolescent sexuality. Surveys which provide this information include the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS),the National Population Health Survey (NPHS) and the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY). According to information drawn from the Canadian Community Health Survey and the National Population Health Survey,in 2005 43% of teens aged 15 to 19 reported that they had had sexual intercourse at least once.
Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus is a licensed clinical psychologist and professor with the University of California,Los Angeles,Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences. Rotheram is the professor-in-residence in the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. She is the Director of the Global Center for Children and Families at UCLA and the former director of the Center for HIV Identification,Prevention,and Treatment Services.
David DuPuy Celentano is a noted epidemiologist and professor who has contributed significantly to the promotion of research on HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). He is the Charles Armstrong chair of the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He holds joint appointments with the school’s departments of Health Policy and Management,Health Behavior and Society,and International Health,and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases.
William W. Latimer is an infectious disease epidemiologist. He is the Vice President of the Bronx Campus of Mercy College.
Wendee M. Wechsberg is an American social science researcher. Wechsberg's research focuses on developing and testing the efficacy of HIV prevention interventions among key populations of substance abusers globally. She is a recognized expert in the fields of substance abuse,gender inequality,and HIV. She developed the Women's CoOp intervention,a woman-focused behavioral HIV intervention that incorporates gender- and culture-specific skills training. Wechsberg is a Principal Researcher and Director of the Substance Use,Gender,and Applied Research (SUGAR) Program at RTI International and Director of the RTI Global Gender Center. She is also adjunct professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) Gillings School of Global Public Health,Adjunct Professor of Psychology at North Carolina State University (NCSU),and adjunct professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University School of Medicine.
Risky sexual behavior is the description of the activity that will increase the probability that a person engaging in sexual activity with another person infected with a sexually transmitted infection will be infected or become pregnant,or make a partner pregnant. It can mean two similar things:the behavior itself,the description of the partner's behavior. The behavior could be unprotected vaginal,oral,or anal intercourse. The partner could be a nonexclusive partner,HIV-positive,or an intravenous drug user. Drug use is associated with risky sexual behaviors.
Jeffrey T. Parsons is an American psychologist,researcher,and educator;he was a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Hunter College and The Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY) and was the Director of Hunter College’s Center for HIV/AIDS Educational Studies &Training,which he founded in 1996. Parsons was trained as a developmental psychologist and applied this training to understand health,with a particular emphasis on HIV prevention and treatment. He was known for his research on HIV risk behaviors of gay,bisexual,and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM),HIV-related syndemics,and sexual compulsivity. He resigned his positions at CUNY on July 3,2019,following a year-long university investigation of misconduct allegations against him.
Human sexual promiscuity is the practice of having many different sexual partners. In the case of men,this behavior of sexual nondiscrimination and hypersexuality is referred to as satyriasis,while in the case of women,this behavior is conventionally known as nymphomania. Both conditions are regarded as possibly compulsive and pathological qualities,closely related to hyper-sexuality. The results of,or costs associated with,these behaviors are the effects of human sexual promiscuity.
Marguerita Lightfoot is a counseling psychologist known for her research in the field of preventive medicine,especially in regard to HIV prevention and advocacy for homeless youth. She is Professor of Medicine at the University of California,San Francisco School of Medicine and the Chief of the Division of Prevention Science. She serves on the National Academies of Sciences,Engineering,and Medicine Committee on Fostering Healthy Mental,Emotional,and Behavioral Development among Children and Youth.
Debra A. Murphy is a Professor Emerita at the University of California,Los Angeles in the Department of Psychiatry.
William Bunker Hansen is a researcher in the field of prevention science. He was a charter member and a vice president of the Society for Prevention Research. In 1993 he founded Tanglewood Research. He has authored over 40 versions of alcohol,tobacco,and other substance abuse prevention programs,most notably the All Stars (Prevention) series of prevention programs.