Kevin Vowles

Clinical and Research Interests:

• Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine
• Use and development of empirically-supported treatments for physical health conditions, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
• Assessment measure development
• Effective and appropriate opioid and analgesic use for chronic pain

I take a systematic approach to the study, assessment, and treatment of chronic pain and chronic illness in adults and adolescents. Through my research program, I have found that: (1) chronic pain is a complex experience, composed of more than nociception alone, (2) it is possible to improve willingness to have pain in the service of personally-identified values, even if pain remains, (3) substance misuse issues in chronic pain occur in a clinically significant minority of individuals, and (4) treatment effectiveness can be quantified as engagement in meaningful living, not merely as pain reduction. My research has resulted in just over 90 peer-reviewed articles and chapters, 1 edited book, and more than 100 national and international oral presentations.

I have worked in both clinical and academic centres of excellence across the UK and the USA. My clinical and research work have been supported by funding bodies such as the National Institutes of Health, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, and Arthritis Research Council/Versus Arthritis.

In terms of formal indicators of impact, as of January 2019, my h-index is 27 with 2965 total citations on the Web of Science and 33 with 6007 total citations on Google Scholar. My m-index is 1.8 and 2.1, respectively, on these two databases. My research has been reported on by Forbes (04/2015), US News and World Report (04/2015), Vox (06/2017), and National Public Radio (05/2018).