General Biographical Sketch Sample

OMB No. 0925-0001 and 0925-0002 (Rev. 10/15 Approved Through 10/31/2018)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

DO NOT EXCEED FIVE PAGES.

NAME: Hunt, Morgan Casey

eRA COMMONS USER NAME (credential, e.g., agency login): huntmc

POSITION TITLE: Associate Professor of Psychology

EDUCATION/TRAINING (Begin with baccalaureate or other initial professional education, such as nursing, include postdoctoral training and residency training if applicable. Add/delete rows as necessary.)

INSTITUTION AND LOCATION	DEGREE (if applicable)	Completion Date MM/YYYY	FIELD OF STUDY
University of California, Berkeley	B.S	05/1990	Psychology
University of Vermont	Ph.D.	05/1996	Experimental Psychology
University of California, Berkeley	Postdoctoral	08/1998	Public Health and Epidemiology

A. Personal Statement

I have the expertise, leadership, training, expertise and motivation necessary to successfully carry out the proposed research project. I have a broad background in psychology, with specific training and expertise in ethnographic and survey research and secondary data analysis on psychological aspects of drug addiction. My research includes neuropsychological changes associated with addiction. As PI or co-Investigator on several university- and NIH-funded grants, I laid the groundwork for the proposed research by developing effective measures of disability, depression, and other psychosocial factors relevant to the aging substance abuser, and by establishing strong ties with community providers that will make it possible to recruit and track participants over time as documented in the following publications. In addition, I successfully administered the projects (e.g. staffing, research protections, budget), collaborated with other researchers, and produced several peer-reviewed publications from each project. As a result of these previous experiences, I am aware of the importance of frequent communication among project members and of constructing a realistic research plan, timeline, and budget. The current application builds logically on my prior work. During 2005-2006 my career was disrupted due to family obligations. However, upon returning to the field I immediately resumed my research projects and collaborations and successfully competed for NIH support.

1. Merryle, R.J. & Hunt, M.C. (2004). Independent living, physical disability and substance abuse among the elderly. Psychology and Aging, 23(4), 10-22.

2. Hunt, M.C., Jensen, J.L. & Crenshaw, W. (2007). Substance abuse and mental health among community-dwelling elderly. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 24(9), 1124-1135.

3. Hunt, M.C., Wiechelt, S.A. & Merryle, R. (2008). Predicting the substance-abuse treatment needs of an aging population. American Journal of Public Health, 45(2), 236-245. PMCID: PMC9162292 Hunt, M.C., Newlin, D.B. & Fishbein, D. (2009). Brain imaging in methamphetamine abusers across the life-span. Gerontology, 46(3), 122-145.

B. Positions and Honors

Positions and Employment

1998-2000 Fellow, Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Drug Abuse, Bethesda, MD

2000-2002 Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Middlebury College, Middlebury, VT

2001- Consultant, Coastal Psychological Services, San Francisco, CA

2002-2005 Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

2007- Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

Other Experience and Professional Memberships

1995- Member, American Psychological Association

1998- Member, Gerontological Society of America

1998- Member, American Geriatrics Society

2000- Associate Editor, Psychology and Aging

2003- Board of Advisors, Senior Services of Eastern Missouri

2003-05 NIH Peer Review Committee: Psychobiology of Aging, ad hoc reviewer

2007-11 NIH Risk, Adult Addictions Study Section, members

Honors

2003 Outstanding Young Faculty Award, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

2004 Excellence in Teaching, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

2009 Award for Best in Interdisciplinary Ethnography, International Ethnographic Society

C. Contribution to Science

1. My early publications directly addressed the fact that substance abuse is often overlooked in older adults. However, because many older adults were raised during an era of increased drug and alcohol use, there are reasons to believe that this will become an increasing issue as the population ages. These publications found that older adults appear in a variety of primary care settings or seek mental health providers to deal with emerging addiction problems. These publications document this emerging problem but guide primary care providers and geriatric mental health providers to recognize symptoms, assess the nature of the problem and apply the necessary interventions. By providing evidence and simple clinical approaches, this body of work has changed the standards of care for addicted older adults and will continue to provide assistance in relevant medical settings well into the future. I served as the primary investigator or co-investigator in all of these studies.

   1. Gryczynski, J., Shaft, B.M., Merryle, R., & Hunt, M.C. (2002). Community based participatory research with late-life addicts. American Journal of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 15(3), 222-238.

   2. Shaft, B.M., Hunt, M.C., Merryle, R., & Venturi, R. (2003). Policy implications of genetic transmission of alcohol and drug abuse in female nonusers. International Journal of Drug Policy, 30(5), 46-58.

   3. Hunt, M.C., Marks, A.E., Shaft, B.M., Merryle, R., & Jensen, J.L. (2004). Early-life family and community characteristics and late-life substance abuse. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 28(2),26-37.

   4. Hunt, M.C., Marks, A.E., Venturi, R., Crenshaw, W. & Ratonian, A. (2007). Community-based intervention strategies for reducing alcohol and drug abuse in the elderly. Addiction, 104(9), 1436-1606. PMCID: PMC9000292

2. In addition to the contributions described above, with a team of collaborators, I directly documented the effectiveness of various intervention models for older substance abusers and demonstrated the importance of social support networks. These studies emphasized contextual factors in the etiology and maintenance of addictive disorders and the disruptive potential of networks in substance abuse treatment. This body of work also discusses the prevalence of alcohol, amphetamine, and opioid abuse in older adults and how networking approaches can be used to mitigate the effects of these disorders.

   1. Hunt, M.C., Merryle, R. & Jensen, J.L. (2005). The effect of social support networks on morbidity among elderly substance abusers. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 57(4), 15-23.

   2. Hunt, M.C., Pour, B., Marks, A.E., Merryle, R. & Jensen, J.L. (2005). Aging out of methadone treatment. American Journal of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 15(6), 134-149.

   3. Merryle, R. & Hunt, M.C. (2007). Randomized clinical trial of cotinine in older nicotine addicts. Age and Ageing, 38(2), 9-23. PMCID: PMC9002364

3. Methadone maintenance has been used to treat narcotics addicts for many years but I led research that has shown that over the long-term, those in methadone treatment view themselves negatively and they gradually begin to view treatment as an intrusion into normal life. Elderly narcotics users were shown in carefully constructed ethnographic studies to be especially responsive to tailored social support networks that allow them to eventually reduce their maintenance doses and move into other forms of therapy. These studies also demonstrate the policy and commercial implications associated with these findings.

1. Hunt, M.C. & Jensen, J.L. (2003). Morbidity among elderly substance abusers. Journal of the Geriatrics, 60(4), 45-61.

2. Hunt, M.C. & Pour, B. (2004). Methadone treatment and personal assessment. Journal Drug Abuse, 45(5), 15-26.

3. Merryle, R. & Hunt, M.C. (2005). The use of various nicotine delivery systems by older nicotine addicts. Journal of Ageing, 54(1), 24-41. PMCID: PMC9112304

4. Hunt, M.C., Jensen, J.L. & Merryle, R. (2008). The aging addict: ethnographic profiles of the elderly drug user. NY, NY: W. W. Norton & Company.

Complete List of Published Work in MyBibliography: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/myncbi/collections/public/1PgT7IEFIAJBtGMRDdWFmjWAO/?sort=date&direction=ascending

D. Research Support

Ongoing Research Support

R01 DA942367 Hunt (PI) 09/01/08-08/31/16

Health trajectories and behavioral interventions among older substance abusers

The goal of this study is to compare the effects of two substance abuse interventions on health outcomes in an urban population of older opiate addicts.

Role: PI

R01 MH922731 Merryle (PI) 12/15/07-11/30/15

Physical disability, depression and substance abuse in the elderly

The goal of this study is to identify disability and depression trajectories and demographic factors associated with substance abuse in an independently-living elderly population.

Role: Co-Investigator

Faculty Resources Grant, Washington University 08/15/09-08/14/15

Opiate Addiction Database

The goal of this project is to create an integrated database of demographic, social and biomedical information for homeless opiate abusers in two urban Missouri locations, using a number of state and local data sources.

Role: PI

Completed Research Support

R21 AA998075 Hunt (PI) 01/01/11-12/31/13

Community-based intervention for alcohol abuse

The goal of this project was to assess a community-based strategy for reducing alcohol abuse among older individuals.

Role: PI