Jennifer McClure, PhD
“We create programs and tools to empower people and help them lead healthier lives. By doing so, we can reduce the need for health care and the growing burden of health care costs for all.”
Jennifer McClure, PhD
Director, Investigative Science; Senior Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Professor, Department of Health Systems Science, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
Jennifer.B.Mcclure@kp.org
206-287-2737
Biography
Jennifer McClure, PhD, is director of Investigative Science at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI). She is also a senior investigator and clinical psychologist whose research focuses on developing new interventions to reduce people’s risk of chronic disease and cancer or help them better manage existing chronic disease through:
- Smoking cessation
- Dietary improvement
- Increased physical activity
- Treatment adherence
- Stress management
- Better oral health
- Informed decision-making
Much of Dr. McClure’s research emphasizes creating highly individualized behavioral treatments that can be disseminated on a population level, through health care systems and tobacco quitlines or directly to individuals via digital health tools, such as mobile health (mHealth) apps. Her goal is to design programs that are effective, convenient, engaging, and cost-effective, understanding that to make the leap from research to real world, interventions should meet these criteria.
Dr. McClure is best known for her research creating novel treatments for nicotine dependence, particularly interventions targeted to smokers who are ambivalent about quitting. These individuals may want to quit smoking some day, but are not yet ready to give up tobacco. Most smokers fall into this category, but few interventions are targeted to this important group. Her research has demonstrated the effectiveness of using proactive counseling and online interventions to motivate and support smoking cessation among ambivalent smokers. Her work has also shed light on the potential risks and benefits of using biological indicators of disease or disease risk to motivate quitting. Now she is developing two new mHealth apps to help ambivalent smokers kick the habit: one designed for anyone who smokes and one designed specifically for smokers living with HIV.
Dr. McClure’s collaborative research covers a range of topics from reducing sedentary behavior to comparing the effectiveness of various strategies for assessing and diagnosing high blood pressure.
In recognition of her scientific contributions, Dr. McClure was named a fellow in the Society of Behavioral Medicine (SBM) in 2013 and a fellow in the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco in 2018. In 2019 she joined the faculty of the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J Tyson School of Medicine as a professor in Health Systems Science. Dr. McClure is also an affiliate professor of health services at the University of Washington School of Public Health and an affiliate investigator in the Division of Public Health Sciences at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. She currently serves as the Secretary and Treasurer of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco.
RESEARCH INTERESTS AND EXPERIENCE
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Behavior Change & Behavioral Medicine
Tobacco cessation; pharmocogenomics of nicotine addiction; treatment adherence; population-based behavior interventions; health risk communications; oral health promotion; dietary change; physical activity promotion; informed decision-making; psychoneuroimmunology; HIV
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Health Informatics & Digital Health
Development of eHealth and mHealth intervention tools
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Mental Health
Depression treatment and development of behavior change interventions for people with serious mental illness
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Cancer
Prevention
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Chronic Illness Management
HIV
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Addictions
Prevention and treatment
Recent publications
Wetter DW, McClure JB. Smoking cessation: research and clinical strategies. Highlights in Oncology Practice. 1999;16(4):86-90.
McClure JB. Abstinence rates achieved with buproprion corrected. Oncology (Huntingt). 1998;12(9):1303. PubMed
Cinciripini PM, McClure JB. Smoking cessation: recent developments in behavioral and pharmacologic interventions. Oncology (Huntingt). 1998;12(2):249-56, 259; discussion 260, 265, .,. PubMed
Catz SL, McClure JB, Jones GN, Brantley PJ. Factors associated with HIV outpatient nonadherence. Ann Behav Med. 1998;20 (Suppl):S49.
Cinciripini PM, Wetter DW, McClure JB. Scheduled reduced smoking: effects on smoking abstinence and potential mechanisms of action. Addict Behav. 1997;22(6):759-67. PubMed
Skaar KL, Tsoh JY, McClure JB, Cinciripini PM, Friedman K, Wetter DW, Gritz ER. Smoking cessation. 1: An overview of research. Behav Med. 1997;23(1):5-13. PubMed
Tsoh JY, McClure JB, Skaar KL, Wetter DW, Cinciripini PM, Prokhorov AV, Friedman K, Gritz E. Smoking cessation. 2: Components of effective intervention. Behav Med. 1997;23(1):15-27. PubMed
McClure JB, Skaar K, Tsoh J, Wetter DW, Cinciripini PM, Gritz ER. Smoking cessation. 3: Needed healthcare policy changes. Behav Med. 1997;23(1):29-34. PubMed
Payne TJ, McClure JB, Martin P, Ries B, Catz SL, Skaar K, Tsoh J, Jones A. Race and age related differences in pre-treatment characteristics of smoking clinic enrollees at a VA medical center. Proceedings of the 3rd annual Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. 1997, 59.
Thomason BT, Jones GN, McClure JB, Brantley PJ. Psychosocial co-factors in HIV illness: an empirically-based model. Psychology and Health. 1996;11:385-393.
Research
Digital tool could help people change smoking habits
A mobile application designed to engage smokers who are ambivalent about quitting shows promising results.
Healthy findings blog
For Women's History Month: Q&A with scientific leaders
KPWHRI’s executive director and scientific division leaders share their career paths, advice.New findings
There’s no place like home … to track blood pressure
Research led by KPWHRI’s Beverly Green, MD, MPH, finds that patients prefer at-home monitoring of blood pressure.
Behavioral Health
Surviving an FFP: COVID-19
Dr. Jennifer McClure shares advice and resources for staying physically and emotionally well during the COVID-19 crisis, and beyond.
research
Oral Health 4 Life: 10 years of research to improve smokers’ health and dental care
As Dr. Jennifer McClure completes the last of three innovative studies, she reflects on how the work began, the difference it may make, and what happens next.
healthy findings blog
Can being accepting and mindful help you stop smoking?
Tobacco remains a public health priority. Jennifer McClure, PhD, discusses her findings comparing ’acceptance and commitment therapy’ to standard care.
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