Adolescent Behavioral Health Research Program

• Aalsma, M. C., Schwartz, K., Sun, D., O'Reilly, L. M., Brown, S. A., Monahan, P. O., Saldana, L., Wiehe, S. E., Zapolski, T. C. B., Hulvershorn, L. A., Adams, Z. W., & Dir, A. L. (2026). Learning Health Systems and Substance Use Care Cascade Achievement Among Justice-Involved Youth: A Cluster-Randomized Stepped-Wedge Clinical Trial. JAMA network open, 9(2), e2558222. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.58222
• Adams, Z. W., Marriott, B. R., Burns, A., Agley, J., Wu, W., Aalsma, M. C., Hulvershorn, L. A., & Zapolski, T. C. (2026). Study protocol for a patient-centered hybrid type 1 effectiveness-implementation randomized controlled trial evaluating caregiver involvement in primary care-based brief interventions for adolescents with mild alcohol use disorder. Contemporary clinical trials, 162, 108241. Advance online publication.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2026.108241
• Gupta, S., Schwartz, K., Bell, L. A., Siegal, N., & Aalsma, M. C. (2026). Statewide trends in access to medications for opioid use disorder (moud) among adolescents with opioid use disorders in Indiana. Drug and alcohol dependence reports, 18, 100417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dadr.2026.100417
• Jacobs, W., Qin, W. A., Baiden, P., Amuta-Jimenez, A., & Zapolski, T. (2026). Adverse Childhood Experiences, Discrimination, Nativity, and Associations with Tobacco and Cannabis Use Among Black Young Adults in the U.S. Substance use & misuse, 61(2), 227–236. https://doi.org/10.1080/10826084.2025.2549786
• Marriott, B. R., Meyer, A. E., Feagans, A., Batch, B. L., & Adams, Z. W. (2026). Characterizing Fidelity Monitoring Practices in Community Behavioral Health Care. The journal of behavioral health services & research, 53(1), 45–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-025-09967-x
• Marsh, N. P., Oddo, L. E., Wiggs, K. K., Murphy, J. G., & Chronis-Tuscano, A. (2026). Sleep Variability and Negative Alcohol-Related Consequences in College Students: Dynamic Associations With ADHD. Journal of attention disorders, 30(2), 207–221. https://doi.org/10.1177/10870547251376065
• Mattey-Mora, P. P., Dellucci, T. V., Smoker, M. P., Aalsma, M. C., & Hulvershorn, L. A. (2026). Impulsivity and Early Initiation of Sexual Behaviors in Adolescents with Externalizing Disorders. Archives of sexual behavior, 55(1), 99–107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-025-03305-0
• Siegal, N., Gupta, S., Miles, J., Samples, H., Simon, K., Aalsma, M. C., & Crystal, S. (2026). Medicaid Expansion and Buprenorphine Dispensing in Early vs Recent Expansion States. JAMA network open, 9(2), e2559803. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.59803

Zack Adams’s lab: Dr. Zack Adam’s lab in the Department of Psychiatry focuses on improving access to high-quality clinical services for children, teens and families impacted by mental health disorders and substance use.

Dir Lab: Dr. Ally Dir’s lab focuses on improving youth and parent engagement while navigating the juvenile justice system in order to facilitate youth development, engagement and positive system outcomes.  

Health and Justice Lab: The Health and Justice Lab, led by Dr. Matt Aalsma, works to improve how vulnerable youth are screened, referred, and connected to mental and behavioral healthcare. The team focuses on children and adolescents involved in behavioral health and juvenile justice systems, striving to ensure they receive timely, evidence-based care and support.  

Hulvershorn Lab: Dr. Hulvershorn’s lab in the Department of Psychiatry explores how youth make risky decisions, how the brain supports these choices, and how such decisions relate to outcomes like infectious disease risk, suicidal behavior, and substance use. The team also develops, and tests interventions designed to positively influence risky decision making.  

PRISM Lab: Dr. Tamika Zapolski’s Prevention Research in Substance Use and Minority Health (PRISM) Lab within the Department of Psychiatry focuses on risk and protection for substance use and other health behaviors among racial/ethnic minority youths and young adults  

SOLACE Lab: Dr. Pederson’s Solutions for Overcoming Life Threatening Actions and Crisis Events for Teens (SOLACE) Lab is dedicated to strengthening teen mental health care by improving early identification and access to mental health support. The lab delivers innovative solutions including clinical decision support tools, tele mental health services, and behavioral health screening with health care providers, juvenile justice systems, and families.  

Youth Coalition (YOCO): The Indiana University School of Medicine’s Youth Coalition (YOCO), founded by Dr. Tamika Zapolski in 2023, brings together youth ages 13-18 from diverse backgrounds to help shape the future of mental health research.