Project PATH

Project Path

 

Thank you for your interest in Project PATH! Enrollment in this study is closed. On this page, you can find information about the study, our team, and publications that have resulted from Project PATH.


Study Information

What is Project PATH?

National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism: R01AA025611

Project PATH is a research study conducted by the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth, TX. The study focuses on how adolescents and young adults make decisions about alcohol use on a daily basis. The Project PATH research team started enrolling participants in June 2020 and completed data collection in April 2023. The main goals of this study are to gain a better understanding of how the thoughts and decisions of adolescents and young adults about drinking influence their actual drinking behavior, especially on a day-to-day basis. Since alcohol use is a public health concern, it is important to figure out how thoughts and decisions about alcohol influence alcohol use at the daily level. This understanding will be crucial for developing effective strategies to prevent alcohol use among adolescents and young adults in the future.

Where can you learn more about our research findings from Project PATH?

Peer-Reviewed Publications

  • Litt, D. M., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., King, K. M., Cross, A., Kannard, E., Geusens, F., & Lewis, M. A. (2023). Daily level examination indicates that positive affect, but not negative affect, is associated with alcohol and marijuana use among adolescents and young adults. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000949 
  • Pritschmann, R. K., Gebru, N. M., Litt, D. M., Zhou, Z., & Lewis, M. A. (2022). Are drinking cognitions associated with marijuana and concurrent alcohol and marijuana use among adolescents and young adults? Cannabis, 5(1), 59-74. https://doi.org/10.26828%2Fcannabis%2F2022.01.006

Conference Presentations

  • Cross, A., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., Litt, D. M., Graupensperger, S., & Lewis, M. A. (2023, June). Examining familiarity with location and people in association with protective behavioral strategy use among adolescents and young adults at the daily-level. Poster presented at The University of North Texas Health Science Center (UNTHSC) Annual Research Appreciation Day (RAD), Fort Worth, Texas.
  • Cross, A.N.,Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A.M., Litt, D.M., Graupensperger, S., Lewis, M.A. (2023, June 24-28). Daily-level examination of familiarity with location/people in association with protective behavioral strategy use among adolescents and young adults. Poster Presented at 46th Annual Research Society on Alcohol Scientific Meeting, Bellevue, WA.
  • Fairlie, A. M., Walukevich-Dienst, K., Lewis, M. A., & Lee, C. M. (2023, March 23-25). Young adults’ evaluations of marijuana consequences: Differences by student status and use frequency. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Collaborative Perspectives on Addiction, Albuquerque, NM. 
  • Lewis, M. A., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., Litt, D. M., & Lee, C. M. (2023, March 23-25). Occasion-level examination of playing drinking games: Associations with drinking cognitions, situational factors, alcohol use, and negative consequences among adolescents and young adults. In B. Zamboanga and K. Van Hedger (Chairs), An event-specific examination of health risk outcomes of drinking game participation among adolescents and young adults. Symposia presented at the Collaborative Perspectives on Addiction annual meeting, Albuquerque, NM.
  • Lewis, M. A., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., Kannard, E., Smith, J. L., Smith, L. L., & Litt, D. M. (2022, November 17-20). Examining within-person associations between alcohol and marijuana use and hooking up among adolescents and young adults [Poster presentation]. The Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies 56th Annual Convention, New York City, NY, USA.
  • Lewis, M. A., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., Litt, D., Kannard, E., Walker, T. B., Resendiz, R. A., & Lee, C. M. (2022, June 25-29). Playing drinking games as a daily-level predictor of alcohol use and negative consequences among adolescents and young adults [Poster presentation]. The Research Society on Alcoholism 45th Annual Convention, Orlando, FL, USA.
  • Lewis, M. A., Zhou, Z., Parks, K. A., Evans-Polce, R., Litt, D. M., Fairlie, A., M., LoParco, C.., R., & McCabe, S. E. (2021, June). Examining the role of polysubstance use in experience negative alcohol-related sexual consequences among underage young adults. Poster presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting (Virtual Poster Session) of the Research Society on Alcoholism.
  • Litt, D. M., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., Graupensperger, S., Cross, A., Lee, C. M., & Lewis, M.A. (2023, June 24-28). A daily level examination of willingness to engage in alcohol-related risk behaviors in association with risk behaviors among adolescents and young adults. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Research Society on Alcohol, Bellevue, WA.
  • Litt, D. M.,  Zhou, Z., & Lewis, M. A. (2023, March 23-25). Daily-level associations between playing drinking games and specific alcohol related consequences. In B. Zamboanga and K. Van Hedger (Chairs), An event-specific examination of health risk outcomes of drinking game participation among adolescents and young adults. Symposia presented at the Collaborative Perspectives on Addiction annual meeting, Albuquerque, NM.
  • Litt, D. M., Zhou, Z., Fairlie, A. M., King, K. M., Cross, A., Kannard, E., & Lewis, M. A. (2023, March 23-25). Daily-level associations between affect and substance use among adolescents and young adults [Poster presentation]. The Collaborative Perspectives on Addiction 11th Annual Convention, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
  • Litt, D., Walker, T. B., Resendiz, R. A., Kannard, E. & Lewis, M. A. (2022, June 25-29). Associations between frequency and timing of sent and received alcohol-related text messages and alcohol use among adolescents and young adults [Poster presentation]. The Research Society on Alcoholism 45th Annual Convention, Orlando, FL, USA.
  • LoParco, C., Zhou, Z., Litt, D. M., & Lewis, M. A. (2021, June). Biological sex as a moderator of the associations between positive/negative affect and simultaneous and concurrent alcohol and marijuana a use. Poster presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting (Virtual Poster Session) of the Research Society on Alcoholism.
  • Lowery, A. D., Zhou, Z., Astorga, A., Litt, D. M., & Lewis, M. A. (2021, June). Examining Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) as a moderator of the association between peak drinks and alcohol-induced blacking out. Poster presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting (Virtual Poster Session) of the Research Society on Alcoholism. 
  • Seamster, M. A., LoParco, C. R., Astorga, A., Litt, D. M., & Lewis, M. A. (2021, June). Investigating associations between young adult anxiety, depression, and willingness to engage in alcohol use, marijuana use, and simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use. Poster presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting (Virtual Poster Session) of the Research Society on Alcoholism.
  • Walukevich-Dienst, K., Fairlie, A.M., Lewis, M.A., & Lee, C.M. (2023, June 24-28). Young adults differ in their endorsement and valence of negative alcohol consequences by age and use frequency. Poster presented at the Research Society on Alcoholism Meeting, Bellevue, WA.

About Us

Dr. Melissa A. Lewis, Principal Investigator
Melissa.Lewis@unthsc.edu
Dr. Melissa A. Lewis received her Ph.D. in Health and Social Psychology from North Dakota State University. She is a Professor at the Department of Population & Community Health at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Dr. Dana M. Litt, Co-Investigator
Dana.Litt@unthsc.edu
Dr. Dana M. Litt received her Ph.D. in Applied Social Psychology from The George Washington University. She is a Professor at the Department of Population & Community Health at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Dr. Zhengyang Zhou, Co-Investigator
Zhengyang.Zhou@unthsc.edu 
Dr. Zhengyang Zhou received his Ph.D. in Biostatistics from Southern Methodist University. He is an assistant professor at the Department of Population & Community Health at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Dr. Christine Lee, Co-Investigator
leecm@uw.edu
Dr. Christine Lee received her Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Arizona. She is a Research Professor at the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Anne Fairlie, Co-Investigator
afairlie@uw.edu
Dr. Anne Fairlie received her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Rhode Island. She is an Acting Assistant Professor at the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Kevin King, Co-Investigator
kingkm@uw.edu
Dr. Kevin King received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Arizona State University. He is an Associate Professor at the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Scott Graupensperger, Co-Investigator
graups@uw.edu
Dr. Scott Graupensperger received his dual Ph.D. in Kinesiology and Clinical & Translational Science from Pennsylvania State University. He is Acting Assistant Professor at the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Robert “Andrew” Yockey, Co-Investigator
Robert.Yockey@unthsc.edu
Dr. Andrew Yockey received his Ph.D. in Health Education from the University of Cincinnati. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Dr. Mary E. Larimer, Co-Investigator
larimer@uw.edu
Dr. Mary E. Larimer received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Washington. She is a Professor at the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Michael Gilson, Co-Investigator
gilson@uw.edu
Dr. Michael Gilson received his Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Arizona, and his JD from the University of Washington School of Law. He is a Senior Research Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors at the University of Washington, Seattle.

Haleigh Hicks, Research Assistant
Haleigh.Hicks@unthsc.edu
Haleigh Hicks received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Texas at Arlington. She is a research assistant for Dr. Melissa Lewis and Dr. Dana Litt at the Department of Population & Community Health at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Allison Cross, Graduate Student Research Assistant
AllisonCross@my.unthsc.edu
Allison Cross received her Bachelor of Science in Addiction and Recovery and her Master of Science in Human Development and Family Studies through the Accelerated Master’s Program at the University of Alabama. She is now earning her PhD in Public Health with a concentration in Human Behavior Research at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Kat Vrotsos, Graduate Student Research Assistant
KatherineVrotsos@my.unthsc.edu
Kat Vrotsos received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at the University of North Texas. She earned her Master of Arts in Psychological Research at Texas State University. She is now earning her PhD in Public Health with a concentration in Human Behavior Research at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

Contact Us

Email: PATH@unthsc.edu

Lab Phone: 682-703-0750