Center Research Faculty

Kimberly Mallett
Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, University of Washington

Clinical Director, Alcohol and Skin Cancer Projects; Research Associate Professor, Prevention Research Center for the Promotion of Human Development

Program Areas: Emerging Adulthood

Contact Information

204 E. Calder Way, Suite 208

State College, PA 16801

Email

Phone: (814) 863-3731

Research Interests

 

Developing and evaluating interventions aimed at reducing high-risk drinking and related consequences among college students; prevention of skin cancer among high-risk populations; enhancing communication between physicians and patients and the impact of doing so on behavior change among patients

 

Examples of Current Prevention Projects 

Parent-based Interventions to Prevent Student Drinking

(Project ACT, the ENALC Project, Project PACT)

Start Date: 1999

Funder: NIAAA

The present study is the further development of a program of research designed to reduce the onset and extent of drinking and contribute to the changing campus norms through implementation of efficacious Parent-Based Interventions (PBIs) based on the work of Turrisi and colleagues (1999; 2000; 2001). The focus is on influencing drinking behavior of the students through an intervention with their parents during their first year of college. The conversations will take place in one of three conditions; (1) prior to college matriculation during the transition period between high school and college (PCM), (2) Prior to college matriculation and then throughout the fall semester resulting from booster parent "check-ins" (PCMB), or (3) after college matriculation during the fall of the first semester at college (AMC).

Enhancing Patient Communication among Dermatologists

(Project Options)

Start Date: 2009

Funder: National Cancer Institute

The objective of this etiological research is to train MDs to deliver a BNI intervention to their patients in the context of a routine office visit. The primary aim of the study is to fully develop a sustainable BNI training program focused on UVL risk and protective behaviors for MDs and evaluate whether MDs can be trained to deliver the BNI to patients with fidelity.

Recent Publications 

Selected Publications—Alcohol

Mallett, K. A., Bachrach, R. L., & Turrisi, R. (2008). Are all negative consequences truly negative? Assessing variations among college students' perceptions of alcohol related consequences. Addictive Behaviors, 33, 1375–1381.

Mallett, K. A., Marzell, M., Varvil-Weld, L., Turrisi, R., Guttman, K., & Abar, C. (2011). One-time or repeat offenders? An examination of the patterns of alcohol-related consequences experienced by college students across the freshman year. Addictive Behaviors, 36, 508–511.

Mallett, K. A., Varvil-Weld, L., Turrisi, R., & Read, A. (2011). An examination of college students’ willingness to experience consequences as a unique predictor of alcohol problems. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 25, 41–47.

Selected Publications—Skin Cancer

Mallett, K. A., Robinson, J. K., & Turrisi, R. (2008). Enhancing patient motivation to reduce UV risk behaviors: Assessing the interest and willingness of dermatologists to try a different approach. Archives of Dermatology, 144, 265–266.

Robinson, J. K., & Mallett, K. A. (2009). The duty to inspect the skin and counsel those at risk to develop melanoma. JAMA, 301, 1702–1704.

Mallett, K. A., Turrisi, R., Guttman, K., Read, A., Billingsley, E., & Robinson, J. (2011). Assessing dermatologists’ ability to deliver a novel intervention to improve patients’ use of sun protection: The ABC method of physician-patient communication. Archives of Dermatology, in press.