Answering questions about electronic cigarettes using a multidisciplinary model.

Abstract

Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) are a relatively new class of tobacco products and a subject of much debate for scientists and policymakers worldwide. Objective data that address the ECIG risk–benefit ratio for individual and public health are needed, and addressing this need requires a multidisciplinary approach that spans several areas of psychology as well as chemistry, toxicant inhalation, and physiology. This multidisciplinary approach would benefit from methods that are reliable, valid, and swift. For this reason, we formed a multidisciplinary team to develop methods that could answer questions about ECIGs and other potential modified risk tobacco products. Our team includes scientists with expertise in psychology (clinical, community, and experimental) and other disciplines, including aerosol research, analytical chemistry, biostatistics, engineering, internal medicine, and public health. The psychologists on our team keep other members focused on factors that influence individual behavior, and other team members keep the psychologists aware of other issues, such as product design. Critically, all team members are willing to extend their interests beyond the boundaries of their discipline to collaborate effectively with the shared goal of producing the rigorous science needed to inform empirically based tobacco policy. In addition, our trainees gain valuable knowledge from these collaborations and learn that other disciplines are accessible, exciting, and can enhance their own research. Multidisciplinary work presents challenges: learning other scientists’ languages and staying focused on our core mission. Overall, our multidisciplinary team has led to several major findings that inform the scientific, regulatory, and public health communities about ECIGs and their effects.

How psychologists help solve real-world problems in multidisciplinary research teams: Introduction to the special issue.

“…They do so within a subpopulation of infants with tuberous sclerosis complex, a rare disorder that can be identified prenatally and has a 50% incidence rate of ASD. Breland et al (2019), in the next article, focus on an emerging health issue relevant to individuals and the public, that of e-cigarettes. Again, using evidence-based research, this multidisciplinary team is answering scientific questions about properties of e-cigarettes that can inform public health policies, outcomes, and regulations.…”