Welcome

The Vermont Center on Behavior and Health (VCBH), led by Director Stephen T. Higgins, PhD, is an interdisciplinary research center committed to investigating relationships between personal behavior patterns (i.e., lifestyle) and risk for chronic disease and premature death. Our work has historically focused on health disparities for the most vulnerable populations, particularly among the socioeconomically disadvantaged where these risk factors are overrepresented.

 

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Located in Burlington, VT at the University of Vermont, Larner College of Medicine, VCBH researchers have a specific focus on understanding mechanisms underpinning risk and developing effective interventions and policies to promote healthy behavior. A common thread across VCBH research projects is the application of knowledge from the disciplines of behavioral economics and behavioral pharmacology to increase understanding of vulnerability to unhealthy behavior and the use of incentives and other behavioral and pharmacological interventions to support healthy behavior change interventions and policies.

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Upcoming VCBH Events

VCBH 11th Annual Conference
"Smoking and Other Tobacco Use Among Women and Girls"
October 5-6, 2023
Hilton Burlington Lake Champlain
More Information

View videos and slides from our FY23 lecture series
on our FY23 Archives Page.

 

Visit the Center on Rural Addiction

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VCBH Career Opportunities

Check back soon for openings.

VCBH News

  • Co-locating Contraceptive Services with Opioid Treatment Programs Offers Cost-Effective Approach to Preventing Unintended Pregnancy
    The trial, led by Sarah Heil, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry at the Vermont Center on Behavior and Health at the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, tested a novel two-component intervention informed by behavioral economics that combined contraceptive services co-located with an opioid treatment program with financial incentives for attending follow-up visits in an effort to increase initiation and continuation of prescription contraceptive use
  • Phil Ades, MD Receives Distinguished Mentor Award
    On Friday, June 11, 2021, Phil Ades, MD, associate director of VCBH and director of cardiac rehabilitation in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at the UVM Medical Center, received the UVM Larner College of Medicine's Department of Medicine’s Distinguished Mentor Award.
  • More States Looking at COVID-19 Vaccine Incentive Programs
    As the US begins to see demand for COVID-19 vaccines plateau, some states have started implementing incentive programs to encourage residents to get one of the three vaccines available: Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson. Recently announced incentive programs are supported by numerous research studies that support the efficacy of incentivizing vaccine adherence.
  • Biden-Harris Administration Announce Drug Policy Priorities Including Focus on Contingency Management and Reimbursement
    On April 1st, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) announced the Biden-Harris Administration’s drug policy priorities (PDF) for year one. Priority one is an expansion of access to evidence-based treatment, which includes identifying and addressing “policy barriers related to contingency management interventions (motivational incentives) for stimulant use disorder” as well as exploring “reimbursement for motivational incentives and digital treatment for addiction, especially stimulant use disorder.”
  • New Commentary on Contingency Management Published in JAMA Psychiatry
    On March 3, 2021, JAMA Psychiatry published "Bringing Together Behavioral Science, Community Engagement, and Cultural Adaptations to Increase Alcohol Abstinence Among American Indian and Alaska Native People Using Contingency Management Therapy," authored by Stephanie S. O’Malley, PhD; Maria C. Crouch, MS; Stephen T. Higgins, PhD.