The “Best of 2024 List” of Health Promotion Researchers

Abstract

Each year the editorial team of the American Journal of Health Promotion selects our “Best of the Year List” of health promotion studies from the prior year. This editorial features the Editor’s Picks Awards, the Editor in Chief Awards, the Michael P. O’Donnell Award and the Dorothy Nyswander Award for the best research and writing published in 2024 in this journal. Our criteria for selection includes: whether the study addresses a topic of timely importance in health promotion, the research question is clearly stated and the study methods used are well executed; whether the paper is often cited and downloaded; if the study findings offer a unique contribution to the literature; and if the paper is well-written and enjoyable to read. Awardees in 2024 offered new insights into research methods, the impact of COVID-19 on individuals and groups, brain health and mental health assessment, climate change perceptions and the role of diversity, equity and inclusion in advancing employee health. This “best of 2024 list” featured studies based in health systems, workplaces and communities and includes case studies and qualitative and quantitative research methods that enabled researchers to better explain what amplifies or hampers well-being.