Biography

I am a SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Social and Preventive Medicine and Community Health and Health Behavior at the University of Buffalo, and the Chief of the Division of Behavioral Medicine. My research interests focus on health behavior change and determinants of eating, physical activity and drug self-administration. I am an internationally recognized authority in the fields of childhood overweight, physical activity, weight control and family intervention. For the past 25 years, I have conducted research relevant to the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity, including mechanisms that regulate intake and energy expenditure in children. I am a fellow in numerous scientific organizations including the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and have been the President of the division of Health Psychology, APA, and recipient of the American Psychological Association Award for Outstanding Contributions to Health Psychology. I chaired the Behavioral Medicine Study Section, NIH, and served on the Advisory Board for Center for Scientific Research, NIH. I have published over 400 scientific papers and three books.