Michelle Acosta, PhD
Principal Investigator, Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, City University of New York.
Michelle Acosta is a Principal Investigator with the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy in New York City. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Delaware, and completed a predoctoral internship in Pediatric Psychology at the A.I. DuPont Hospital for Children. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Addiction Psychology at the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University.
Dr. Acosta’s research activities have focused on novel adaptations of evidence-based substance abuse interventions in non-traditional settings that may improve the reach and acceptability of these treatments for vulnerable populations. She has served as Project Manager, Co-Investigator, and Principal Investigator on a number of federally-funded projects. Dr. Acosta has conducted research focused on developing and evaluating substance abuse interventions for medically ill patients (i.e., patients with chronic pain, patients requiring organ transplant), youth including adolescent and young adult smokers and teens with substance use disorders, recent US Veterans, and adults and young adults with opioid use disorders.
Her current interests include the development and evaluation of technology-delivered interventions, including web-based interventions and interventions delivered via mobile platforms. Dr. Acosta enjoys spending time with her husband and children.
Selected Publications
- Tofighi B, Leonard N, Greco P, Hadavand A, Acosta MC, Lee JD. Technology use patterns among patients enrolled in inpatient detoxification treatment. J Addict Med. 2018 Dec 20. doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000494. PMID: 30589653.
- Possemato K, Johnson EM, Emery JB, Wade M, Acosta MC, Marsch LA, Rosenblum A, Maisto SA. A pilot study comparing peer supported web-based CBT to self-managed web CBT for primary care veterans with PTSD and hazardous alcohol use. Psychiatr Rehabil J. 2018 Nov 29. doi: 10.1037/prj0000334. PMID: 30489140.
- Guarino H, Fong C, Marsch LA, Acosta MC, Syckes C, Moore SK, Cruciani RA, Portenoy RK, Turk DC, Rosenblum A. Web-based cognitive behavior therapy for chronic pain patients with aberrant drug-related behavior: Outcomes from a randomized controlled trial. Pain Medicine. 2018;0:1–15. doi:10.1093/pm/pnx334.
- Possemato K, Acosta MC, Fuentes J, Lantinga LJ, Marsch LA, Maisto SA, Grabinski M, Rosenblum A. A web-based self-management program for recent combat veterans with PTSD and substance misuse: program development and veteran feedback. Cogn Behav Pract. 2015 Aug 1;22(3):345-358. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpra.2014.03.005. PMID: 26120269; PMCID: PMC4480783.
- Marsch LA, Guarino H, Acosta M, Aponte-Melendez Y, Cleland C, Grabinski M,Brady R, Edwards J. Web-based behavioral treatment for substance use disorders as a partial replacement of standard methadone maintenance treatment. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. 2014 Jan;46(1):43-51. PMID: 24060350; PMCID: PMC3839618.
- Moore SK, Guarino H, Acosta MC, Aronson ID, Marsch LA, Rosenblum A, Grabinski MJ, Turk DC. Patients as collaborators: Using focus groups and feedback sessions to develop an interactive, web-based self-management intervention for chronic pain Pain Medicine. 2013;14(11):1730-40. PMID: 23859438. PMCID: PMC3834126.
- Acosta MC, Marsch LA, Xie H, Guarino H, Aponte-Melendez Y. A web-based behavior therapy program influences the association between cognitive functioning and retention and abstinence in clients receiving methadone maintenance treatment. J Dual Diagn. 2012 Oct;8(4):283-293. doi: 10.1080/15504263.2012.723317. PMID: 23671409; PMCID: PMC3650891.
- Haller DL, Acosta MC. Characteristics of pain patients with opioid-use disorder. Psychosomatics. 2010 May-Jun;51(3):257-66. PMID: 20484724.
- Bethea AR, Acosta MC, Haller DL. Patient versus therapist alliance: whose perception matters? Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. 2008 Sep;35(2):174-83. PMID: 18082997; PMCID: PMC2600770.
- Acosta MC, Eissenberg T, Nichter M, Nichter M, Balster RL; Tobacco Etiology Research Network (TERN). Characterizing early cigarette use episodes in novice smokers. Addictive Behaviors. 2008 Jan;33(1):106-21. PMID:17913378.
- Acosta MC, Manubay J, Levin FR. Pediatric obesity: parallels with addiction and treatment recommendations. Harvard Review of Psychiatry. 2008;16(2):80-96. Review. PMID: 18415881; PMCID:PMC3352597.