Background
Titles
- Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
- Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Expertise
Psychiatry, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
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ResearchersMary Margaret Sweeney, M.S., Ph.D.
Education
Degrees
- B.A.; Purdue University (Indiana) (2009)
- M.S.; Utah State University (Utah) (2012)
- Ph.D.; Utah State University (Utah) (2014)
Research & Publications
Research Summary
My research applies basic learning and reinforcement processes to clinical problems of substance use disorders. In double-blind, placebo-controlled laboratory studies, I have examined how the subjective and reinforcing effects of several commonly used drugs (e.g., caffeine, alcohol, cocaine) impact drug taking and risk behavior. I also have experience conducting randomized, controlled clinical trials including: use of motivational incentives (i.e., contingency management) to promote cocaine abstinence in methadone maintenance patients, implementing adjunctive memory training for individuals enrolled in substance use treatment, and assessing a brief, manualized caffeine cessation and reduction program in individuals with problematic caffeine use. My current focus on clinical substance use phenomena is grounded in my past experience in translational behavioral science with humans and nonhumans. All my work shares the common goal of using the principles of reinforcement and behavioral pharmacology to understand, prevent, and treat substance use disorders.
Clinical Trials
Learn more about clinical trials at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Selected Publications
Sweeney, M. M., Meredith, S. E., Juliano, L. M., Evatt, D. P., & Griffiths, R. R. (2019). A randomized controlled trial of a manual-only treatment for reduction and cessation of problematic caffeine use. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 195, 45-51.
Sweeney, M. M., Antoine. D., Nanda, L., Géniaux, H., Lofwall, M. R., Bigelow, G. E., Umbricht, A. (In Press). Increases in Body Mass Index and cardiovascular risk factors during methadone maintenance treatment. Journal of Opioid Management.
Sweeney, M. M., Meredith, S. E., Evatt, D. P, Griffiths, R. R. (2017). Effects of caffeine on alcohol reinforcement: Beverage choice, self-administration, and subjective ratings. Psychopharmacology, 234(5), 877-888.
Sweeney, M. M., Rass, O., Johnson, P. S., Strain, E. C., Berry, M. S., Vo, H. T., Fishman, M. J., Munro, C. A., Rebok, G. W., Mintzer, M. Z, Johnson, M. W. (2016). Initial feasibility and validity of a prospective memory training program in a substance use treatment population. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 24(5), 390-399.
Sweeney, M. M., & Shahan, T. A. (2016). Resurgence of target responses does not exceed increases in inactive responses in a forced-choice alternative reinforcement procedure in humans. Behavioural Processes, 124, 80-92.
Activities & Honors
Honors
- Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, 2009
- Basic Psychological Science Research Grant, American Psychological Association of Graduate Students, 2010
- Experimental Analysis of Behavior Fellowship, The Society for the Advancement of Behavior Analysis, 2011
- Walter R. Borg Scholarship and Research Productivity Award, Utah State University Department of Psychology, 2013
- Dissertation Award for Basic Research, American Psychological Association Division 25 (Behavior Analysis), funded by the Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 2015
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), NIDA Director’s Travel Award to attend 78th Annual Meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, Palm Springs, CA., 2016
- B.F. Skinner Foundation New Researcher Award, American Psychological Assocation, 2019
Memberships
- American Psychological Association
- Association for Behavior Analysis International
- College on Problems of Drug Dependence (MIT)
- Society for the Quantitative Analysis of Behavior