About Us
Our lab uses smartphone-based Ecological Momentary Assessments.
Dr. Michael Businelle's research lab is a cornerstone of the Health Promotion Research Center (HPRC), specializing in the use of mobile health technologies. The lab employs ecological momentary assessments (EMAs), passive sensor data, and just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAI) to gain insights into the complex interplay between the environment, thoughts, feelings, and health behaviors. Driven by a multidisciplinary team with expertise in psychology, communication, and technology, the lab is devoted to developing and implementing real-time, mHealth interventions. Their diverse research initiatives encompass mobile health technology, smoking cessation, mental health, and health disparities in various populations, reflecting the lab's commitment to understanding and addressing health challenges from multiple angles.
Our Team
Principal Investigator
Michael Businelle, PhD
Co-Director of the TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Co-Leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control program at the NCI Designated Stephenson Cancer Center, Director of the mHealth Shared Resource at the TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Professor, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
Michael Businelle was recruited to the University of Oklahoma Health Campus in 2015 to develop and direct the OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center Mobile Health (mHealth) Shared Resource. The mHealth resource, staffed by 10 employees including 5 computer scientists/engineers has created the InsightTM platform. This platform enables researchers to rapidly create mobile applications that can use ecological momentary assessments (EMA) and sensor data (i.e., activity monitor, mobile carbon monoxide monitor, e-cigarette device) to identify environmental, cognitive, affective, physiological, and behavioral antecedents of health risk behaviors (e.g., smoking, heavy alcohol use, poor diet / inactivity / obesity) and deliver context-specific adaptive interventions in real-time. To date, the mHealth resource has supported over 115 research studies (over 60 NIH funded, 5 studies have collected data outside the US – Cambodia, Laos, and Scotland; 5 languages [English, Spanish, Khmer, Vietnamese, and Lao]).
Since 2011, Dr. Businelle has been a PI, Co-I, Mentor, or consultant on 70 studies that have been funded by the NIH, ACS, or internal funds. During that time, he has been a PI on 25 research studies. He currently serves as PI/MPI on 4 ongoing NIH-funded studies including mHealth apps that focus on smoking cessation (R01MD019957, R34CA286803, R01CA315811) or alcohol (R01AA031280) reduction/cessation. Dr. Businelle has a strong publication record (i.e., over 270 peer reviewed publications) in the areas of smoking cessation, mental health, health disparities, and mHealth. His primary goal is to improve understanding of the causes of health disparities and to create and disseminate effective smartphone-based just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs) that reduce health disparities
Postdoctoral Research Fellows
Elena Kalina, PhD, CHES
Elena Kalina began as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the TSET Health Promotion Research Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences in August 2026. She received her PhD in Health Education and Behavior from the University of Florida, where she completed an NIH F31 Predoctoral Fellowship funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).
Her research uses ecological momentary assessment and other intensive longitudinal methods to understand the real-time cognitive, behavioral, and contextual processes that influence substance use (e.g., alcohol, cannabis, tobacco) and health behavior change. She is particularly interested in identifying modifiable risk and protective factors that can inform the development of personalized digital health interventions.
Under the mentorship of Drs. Michael Businelle and Emily Hébert, Elena is expanding her research to leverage mobile health technologies and just-in-time adaptive interventions to promote healthy behavior change and reduce substance use and related harms. Her long-term goal is to establish an independent research program focused on developing precision behavioral interventions that improve health outcomes across diverse populations.
Priyanka (Priya) Chaudhary, PhD
Priya began her role as a Postdoctoral Researcher at HPRC in April 2026. She earned her PhD in Biomechanics and Kinesiology from the University of Nebraska Omaha with a focus on physical activity. Her research focusses on pediatric obesity, physical activity, and health behavior change, with an emphasis on developing and evaluating technology-assisted interventions to promote healthy lifestyles among children and families. Her work integrates mobile health (mHealth), wearable technologies, and family-based approaches, alongside dissemination and implementation science, to enhance real-world impact and scalability. Priya aims to advance digital health interventions by incorporating real-time, adaptive approaches such as Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and Just-In-Time Adaptive Interventions (JITAI) to deliver personalized, context-aware support for behavior change.
Research Staff
Krista Kezbers, PhD, DipACLM, ACSM-EIM
Senior Program Manager
Krista Kezbers joined the TSET HPRC in July 2021 after spending 4 years as a Research Associate at OU-Tulsa. She earned her PhD in Health and Human Performance from Oklahoma State University in 2017 and her dissertation focused on the health and well-being of sports coaches. Krista received a masters degree in Kinesiology from The University of Texas and an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology from The University of Minnesota. Her research interests revolve around improving the health and lifestyle behaviors of individuals in unique populations.
Steven Pan, MS PharmD
Research Biostatistician
Steven Pan joined the HPRC as a Research Biostatistician in September 2025. He received his MS in Biostatistics from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in 2023 and his PharmD from the University of Utah in 2019. He recently worked as a research biostatistician at the Hudson College of Public Health. His current research interests include statistical and predictive modeling.
Zachary Barrett, MS
Research Biostatistician
Zachary Barrett joined the HPRC as a Research Biostatistician in April 2024. He received his master’s degree in Biostatistics from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences in 2023. He has previous professional experience working as a Software Engineer, Project Manager, and Program Manager. His academic background includes training and research covering linguistics, speech-language pathology, Chinese language and culture, health promotion, education, statistical methods, epidemiology, and ecolinguistics. His current research interests involve causal inference, applied Bayesian statistical methods, and how messaging affects intention to adopt health behaviors.
Karly Bradford, MS
Senior Staff Research Assistant
Karly Bradford joined the TSET HPRC in January 2025 after spending two years as a cognitive performance specialist with the Army at Fort Novosel, Alabama where she primarily worked with pilots. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, with minors in Health and Exercise Science and Spanish, from the University of Oklahoma in 2020. She earned her Master of Science in Kinesiology, with a focus in sport psychology, from the University of North Texas in 2022. While at UNT, she helped organize and execute the 2022 Association of Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) South Central Regional Conference and worked as a junior sport psychology consultant with a private Dallas high school. Currently, Karly is working towards earning her Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) through AASP. Her research interests include informal/formal leadership emergence in student-athletes, leadership behaviors, and athlete health.
Carl Witten, MS
Senior Staff Research Assistant
Carl Witten joined the TSET HPRC in April of 2022. He received his Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Master of Science in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Missouri State University. While at Missouri State, Carl worked with Board Certified analysts to provide behavior interventions for children with developmental disabilities. Once out of grad school he worked with the F.A.A. In Oklahoma City performing human factors research on multiple flight-deck projects. Research interests include motivation, and everything related to how organizations operate as functional groups.
Jonathan Larson, BS
Staff Research Assistant
Jonathan Larson joined the TSET HPRC as a Staff Research Assistant in July 2026. He received his Bachelor of Science in Health and Exercise Science with a minor in Computer Science with an interest in public health regarding health disparities among minorities and disadvantaged populations. He is using the experience in research, data analysis, and community outreach gained from the HPRC to better understand the state of public health research in Oklahoma and to determine the specific field of study he plans to pursue in graduate school.”
Sebika Dulal, MPH, CPH
Staff Research Assistant
Sebika Dulal is a Staff Research Assistant in the Businelle Lab at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. She earned her Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Oklahoma and is a Certified in Public Health (CPH) professional. Her research interests include epidemiology, cancer prevention and control, tobacco research, health disparities, and clinical and population health data analysis.
Before joining the Businelle Lab, Sebika worked as a Graduate Research Assistant on the PROVIDE Study, where she supported epidemiologic research examining chronic disease burden and health outcomes among SNAP participants. She also completed her graduate practicum at the OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center, where she conducted epidemiologic research on endometrial cancer, integrating electronic health records and cancer registry data to support retrospective cohort and case-control studies. Prior to pursuing her MPH, she worked with the World Health Organization (WHO) in Nepal, supporting clinical data management and public health research initiatives.
Evelyn Waldrop
Research Technician
Evelyn Waldrop joined the TSET HPRC as an intern in September 2024 and joined as a staff member in May 2025. Currently, she is attending Rose State College to receive her Associates in Psychology, and plans on attending University of Central Oklahoma to receive a Bachelors of Science in Psychology. Evelyn is excited to push herself to learn what research has to offer and become more involved with the lab as she grows with the team. Her research interests include looking at how environments, early life experiences, and genetic predispositions impacts neural development, daily behaviors, affect, physical health, and psychological wellbeing. Her goal is to advocate for more accessible mental health and substance use programs in rural and minority communities that address their unique life experiences.
London Metcalf, BA
Staff Research Assistant
London Metcalf joined the TSET HPRC as a Staff Research Assistant in June 2026. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Scripps College, where she conducted research on legal decision-making and the impacts of consuming media regulated by obscenity law on behavior and emotion. Her research interests focus primarily on the intersection between psychology and law, but she is passionate about promoting well-being, empathy, and care for individuals from all walks of life. London plans on pursuing a PhD in Psychology.
Iman Ishaq, BS
Volunteer Research Assistant
Iman Ishaq joined the TSET HPRC as a volunteer research assistant in May 2026. Iman is currently working towards her Master's in MPH Epidemiology at Hudson College of Public Health while working as a research assistant at Dr. Businelle's lab. Her research interests include looking into the effect modern technology has on treatment outlook in specific social demographics. She is excited to gain more hands-on experience in research and plans on pursuing a PhD in Epidemiology.
Lab Alumni
Isaias Salgado
Isaias was with the Businelle Lab in 2025-26. He is currently attending medical school at the University of Texas.
Ruosi "Rose"Shao
Dr. Rose Shao worked in Dr. Businelle’s lab as a postdoctoral fellow (2022-2024). Dr. Shao is now a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the Florida State University.
Blayne Barker
Blayne is attending law school at the University of Arizona.
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Jillian Robison
Jillian is currently a Clinical Psychology PhD student at the University of Houston.
Emily Hébert, DrPH
Dr. Emily Hébert worked in Dr. Businelle's lab at a postdoctoral fellow and instructor (2016-2020). She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Campus, Health Promotion Research Center conducting research on the use of mobile technology for health behavior evaluation and intervention.
Danielle Walters
Angela Helt
Angela Helt is a Data and Evaluation Manager for the Oklahoma State Department of Health
LaQuita McDade
LaQuita McDade is a Health Services Research Analyst at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Subekchhya Subedi
Subekchhya is an IRB Analyst for Kaiser Permanente.
Mary Williams
Jeremy Langford
Dr. Jeremy Langford worked in the Businelle Lab as a postdoctoral fellow from 2024-2026. Dr. Langford is now a Tenure Track Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences at the University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg, MO.
Bingjing Mao
Dr. Bingjing Mao worked in Dr. Businelle’s lab as a postdoctoral fellow (2022-2024). Dr. Mao is now a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the Louisiana State University.
Alissa Lopez
Alissa was with the Businelle Lab in 2025-26. Lopez is now the Clinical Research Coordinator for the University of Oklahoma Health Campus in the Department of Pediatrics.
Meghan Neumann
Meghan completed her MPH degree in Epidemiology and is continuing her work with the TSET Health Promotion Research Center working in The Active Living & Vitality Lab.
Jessica "Jess" Becerra, PhD
Jessica is a Senior Consultant for Edgility Talent Partners.
Audrey Montgomery
Audrey is attending the University of California Merced beginning fall 2025. She will be working toward her PhD in Psychological Sciences with a concentration in Health Psychology.
Sarah Tonkin
Dr. Sarah Tonkin worked in Dr. Businelle's lab as a postdoctoral fellow (2022-2025). Dr. Tonkin is now a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas.
Irene De La Torre
Irene is attending the University of Colorado in Boulder this fall. She is working toward her PhD in Social Psychology.
Brighton Banks
Brighton is currently studying her Doctor of Science in Holistic Medicine at the American College of Healthcare Sciences.
Nadia Stanley
Nadia works for the ALVY lab at HPRC.
Chaelin "Karen" Ra, PhD
Dr. Chalelin "Karen" Ra worked in Dr. Businelle's lab as a postdoctoral fellow (2019-2022). She is now a tenure track Assistant Professor at Rutgers University.
Clayton Ulm
Clayton is currently pursuing his PhD at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Chris Neal
Chris Neal is a licensed professional counselor who provides individual and couples therapy across Texas and Oklahoma.
Joseph Waring
Lizbeth "Libby" Benson, PhD
Dr. Libby Benson worked in Dr. Businelle's lab as a postdoctoral fellow (2021-2023). Dr. Benson is now a tenure track Research Assistant Professor at the Data Science for Dynamic Intervention Decision Making Center within the Survey Research Center and Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan.
Madison Stout
Madison is an Assistant Professor at the University of Evansville.
Jiwon (Jennie) Min
Jiwon "Jennie" Min is a Clinical Psychologist with Care New England.
Tanushri Bhushan
