The IMPACT (IMproving Prevention through ACTion) Research lab is led by Drs. Laura Hill, Brittany Cooper, Louise Parker and Elizabeth Weybright, and includes undergraduate and graduate students interested in the prevention of social, emotional and behavioral health problems for youth, families and communities. Our research is aimed at closing the gap between the science and real-world practice of prevention, and therefore strong collaborations with prevention practitioners and policymakers are central to our approach. Specifically, our goal is to better understand what it takes to get effective, culturally relevant prevention programs and policies widely disseminated, implemented with high quality, and sustained across time in diverse community settings. To this aim, we engage in action-oriented, mixed-methods research on quality implementation, and sustainability, and conduct evaluations (including non-experimental evaluation in real-world settings) of evidence-based prevention interventions.
News & Noteworthy
2019 Laura Hill hands off Prevention Research Subcommittee Co-chair position
Laura Hill (WSU IMPACT Lab) and Rico Catalano (UW Social Development Research Group) have served as co-chairs of the Prevention Research Subcommittee for the last several years. They are now stepping down as co-chairs, as Brittany Cooper (WSU IMPACT Lab) and Kevin Haggerty (UW SDRG) step into the roles beginning in January 2020. Thank you for your co-leadership Laura!
2019 Gitanjali graduates with her PhD in Prevention Science
IMPACT lab graduate student Gitanjali Shrestha successfully defended her dissertation at the end of November. Dr. Shrestha was hooded by Dr. Laura Hill, her mentor and dissertation chair, on Saturday 12/8/2019 at the Washington State University Commencement celebration. We are excited to have Gitanjali continue with the IMPACT lab as a postdoctoral research associate!
2019 Brittany Cooper awarded best presentation at the Washington State Prevention Summit
Brittany Cooper was selected as the best presentation at the Washington State Prevention Summit Providers Meeting. The Washington State Health Care Authority thanked Brittany for her thoughtful presentation and the feedback that it catalyzed. Pictured: Brittany Cooper (second from the right) with WSU Prevention Science Graduate Students, including IMPACT Lab's Kyle Murphy (far right) at another joint Prevention Summit Workshop.
2019 Elizabeth Weybright's work in adolescent boredom is featured in the WSU Insider
IMPACT PI Elizabeth Weybright's work in her adolescent health promotion lab investigating boredom trends among adolescents was recently featured in the WSU Insider. After a decade of monitoring adolescent boredom, Weybright and her colleagues work has shown that boredom is on the rise for adolescents and is increasing at a more rapid pace for young women. Click to read a recent press release in the WSU insider.
2019 Sabrina DiGennaro awarded DBHR Prevention Fellowship
IMPACT Lab undergraduate Research Assistant Sabrina DiGennaro was awarded the Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery Prevention Fellowship! Sabrina has been working with the IMPACT lab since April 2019 while simultaneously finishing her bachelor's degree (major: Human Development, minor: Psychology) at Washington State University. In January 2020, Sabrina will head to Olympia to begin phase 1 of her fellowship at the Washington State Health Care Authority. We're excited for you Sabrina! Congratulations!
2019 SIRC Award for Outstanding Oral Presentation
The IMPACT lab's Dr. Brittany Cooper was awarded Outstanding Oral Presentation for Bridging Science and Practice at the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) Conference in Seattle. Dr. Cooper's oral presentation was titled: Evidence-based Policymaking to Prevent Youth Substance Misuse: Where the Rubber Slams into the Evidence-Based Program Implementation Road. The presentation was representative of work that IMPACT Lab members, Drs. Cooper and Hill, had completed in collaboration with the University of Washington, the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP), and the Washington State Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery (DBHR). The group has been exploring evidence-based policymaking and conducting cost-benefit analysis in relation to Washington State Initiative 502 and it's legislative mandate to fund state agencies for prevention and reduction of substance use. The presentation shared the group's collaborative approach they have used to address logistical barriers and provide recommendations for how other researchers, policymakers, and practitioners can use cost-benefit evaluation data to inform on-the-ground implementation decisions.
2019 Elizabeth Weybright and WSU team are awarded $1.1 million dollar SAMSHA grant to address rural opioids in WA state
IMPACT's Elizabeth Weybright is co-leading a multidisciplinary team with Michael McDonell (Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine) working towards the Center for Rural Opioid Prevention, Treatment and Recovery. The project will leverage WSU’s Extension system to provide training to rural communities to help them prevent and treat opioid addiction in Washington State. Click to read a recent press release in the WSU insider.
2019 National Prevention Network Award of Excellence
The IMPACT Lab was awarded the 2019 Award of Excellence from the National Prevention Network for their work demonstrating effectiveness of community substance abuse prevention efforts in Washington State. Pictured here: IMPACT Lab Members (L to R: Gitanjali Shrestha, PhDc, Dr. Laura Hill and Dr. Brittany Rhoades Cooper on the far right) with collaborator Ms. Sarah Mariani from the Washington State Health Care Authority.
2019 Elizabeth Weybright receives Susan Barkman Award for Research and Evaluation
Dr. Weybright, along with colleagues Dr. Joy Lile and Pam Watson received the 2019 Susan Barkman Award for Research and Evaluation from the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents (NAE4-HA) for their work on assessing WSU Extension teen programs. This award will be presented at the annual NAE4-HA meeting in November.
2019 SPR Cup Winning Team
For the 2nd year in the row, WSU (Team Datum) won the Annual Society for Prevention Research Sloboda and Bukoski SPR Cup! The Cup is named for two of the founders and long-time active members of SPR, Dr. Zili Sloboda and Dr. William Bukoski. The competition is an opportunity for a unique experience: several independent teams of scientists, each working with the same data set, problem solve together for a brief period of time and then jointly present the results of their work to each other and to a panel of senior prevention scientists and the SPR membership. This year's data came from the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey. IMPACT Lab's Kyle Murphy presented our team's work on Falling and Depression among Older Adults: Explanations, Conditions, and Implications for the Forgotten Population. Pictured: WSU Prevention Science Graduate Students, Shane McFarland (team captain), Kyle Murphy (lead presenter), Myah Houghten, Garrett Jenkins, and Marie Gray; Faculty mentors: Brittany Cooper and Raven Weaver.
2019 Laura Hill awarded Friend of ECPN Award
Laura Hill was awarded the Friend of Early Career Prevention Network (ECPN) Award at the the Annual Meeting of the Society for Prevention Research! This award is presented to a mid-career or senior preventionist who has supported and encouraged early career prevention scientists or issues. Congrats, Laura!