Laura J. Solomon

Research Professor of Family Medicine and Psychology Emerita

Alma mater(s)
  • B.A., 1975, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • M.S., 1977; Ph.D., 1981, Virginia Tech
Affiliated Department(s)
  • Clinical Assistant Professor, 1982-1988
  • Research Associate Professor, 1988-1997
  • Research Professor of Psychology, 1997-2008
  • Research Professor of Family Medicine, 2003-08.

Taught health psychology, community psychology, abnormal psychology, and primary prevention in the Department of Psychology, 1982-1987. Served on over 50 dissertation committees and supervised research projects by over 30 graduate and undergraduate students in the Department of Psychology. With colleagues in the Office of Health Promotion Research and the Human Behavioral Pharmacology Lab in Psychiatry, received funding to support 25 years of research on primary and secondary prevention of major health problems such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and AIDS. Past member of the American Psychological Association, the Society of Behavioral Medicine, and the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco.

Awards and Achievements

  • Phi Beta Kappa, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1975.
  • Fellow, Society of Behavioral Medicine.

Area(s) of expertise

Promotion of behavior change to improve health, including breast cancer screening, HIV risk reduction, and smoking cessation, with a focus on reaching people of lower income.

Awards and Achievements

  • Phi Beta Kappa, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1975.
  • Fellow, Society of Behavioral Medicine.

Areas of Expertise

Promotion of behavior change to improve health, including breast cancer screening, HIV risk reduction, and smoking cessation, with a focus on reaching people of lower income.

Affiliations

  • Board of Directors, American Heart Association-VT Affiliate, 1984-1995 (Executive Committee, 1987-1990)
  • Chair, Coronary Heart Disease Prevention Project, American Heart Association-VT Affiliate, 1983-1987
  • Program Council, American Heart Association-VT Affiliate, 1983-1989; Vermont Heart Attack Prevention Advisory Committee, Vermont Department of Health, 1983-1987
  • Vermont Cancer Center, 1985 to present; Citizen’s Review Committee, AIDS Project, Vermont Department of Health, 1987-1995
  • Board of Directors, Peace and Justice Coalition, Burlington, VT, 1988-1990
  • Breast Cancer Study Group, Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care, 1991-1992
  • Cardiovascular Disease Task Group, Vermont Department of Health, 1992-1996
  • Special Review Committee for HIV Risk Reduction Grants, Vermont Department of Health, 1997;
  • Board of Directors, Vermont Conference on the Primary Prevention of Psychopathology, 1994 to present
  • Board of Health, City of Burlington, VT, 1998-1999
  • Board of Directors, Vermont Women’s Health Center, 1998-2000
  • Scientific Advisory Panel for Tobacco, Vermont Department of Health, 2000-2003
  • Community Justice Panel, Vermont Department of Corrections, 2001-2003; Advisory Council for the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Vermont, 2003-2005
  • Cessation Committee of the Vermont Tobacco Evaluation & Review Board, 2003 to present. Consultant with Kappa Systems, Inc. a Washington, DC-based consulting firm, 1980-1982
  • Coordinated the smoking cessation, nutrition education and school health activities of the National High Blood Pressure Education Program (under contract with NHLBI, NIH).

Selected publications from over 100 in peer-reviewed journals:

  • Solomon LJ, Mickey RM, Rairikar CJ, Worden JK, Flynn BS. (1998) Three-year prospective adherence to three breast cancer screening modalities. Preventive Medicine, 27, 781-786.
  • Worden JK, Mickey RM, Vacek PM, Flynn BS, Solomon LJ, Secker-Walker RH, et al. (2002). Evaluation of a community breast screening promotion program. Preventive Medicine, 35, 349-361.
  • Kelly JA, Murphy DA, Sikkema KJ, McAuliffe TL, Roffman RA, Solomon LJ, Winett RA, Kalichman SC, and the Community HIV Prevention Research Collaborative. (1997). Randomized, controlled, community-level HIV-prevention intervention for sexual-risk behavior among homosexual men in US cities. The Lancet, 350, 1500-1505.
  • Sikkema KJ, Kelly JA, Winett RA, Solomon LJ, et al. (2000). Outcomes of a randomized community-level HIV prevention intervention for women living in 18 low-income housing developments. American Journal of Public Health, 90, 57-63.
  • Solomon LJ, Higgins ST, Heil SH, Badger GJ, Mongeon JA, Bernstein IM. (2006). Psychological symptoms following smoking cessation in pregnant smokers. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 29, 151-160.
  • Solomon LJ, Bunn JY, Flynn BS, Pirie PL, Worden JK, Ashikaga T. [Epub June 29, 2007] Mass media for smoking cessation in adolescents. Health Education & Behavior.