Nikola Zaharakis
Biographic Data
| ID | 2257431 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Nikola Zaharakis |
| GIVEN NAMES | Nikola |
| FAMILY NAME | Zaharakis |
| SIGNATURE | ZAHARAKIS N |
| AFFILIATIONS | Virginia Commonwealth University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0855-9610 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 13 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 14 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 13 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Rural and urban variation in mobile health substance use disorder treatment mechanisms and efficacy
Residents of rural areas face significant barriers to substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, including poor access, stigma, lack of confidentiality, and distrust of mental health services, which may inhibit treatment engagement. Mobile health (mHealth) approaches offer personalized, private, and easily accessible SUD treatment for rural residents, but differences in treatment mechanisms and efficacy across rural and urban regions are unknown. Th…
Young Adults Advancing Through the Stages of Change: A Mediational Analysis of Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The Stages of Change (SoC) model explains addictive behavior change through 5 stages: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Limited evidence exists from randomized controlled trials testing the SoC model in Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD) treatments. The aim of this study was to test the indirect effects of Peer Network Counseling- text (PNC-txt), a text-message delivered motivational interv…
Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms Moderate Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment Effects: A Randomized Clinical Trial with Young Adults
A Methodological Case Example of Capturing Social-Spatial Effects on Behavioral Health Treatment Outcomes
Urban and Rural Differences in the Efficacy of a Mobile Health Depression Treatment for Young Adults
Depression among young adults represents a growing health problem in the U.S., but access to effective treatment remains a challenge. Mobile health (mHealth) approaches promise to deliver accessible and effective depression treatment; however, questions remain regarding how mHealth depression treatment efficacy may vary geographically based on urban and rural environmental contexts. The present study addresses this knowledge gap by leveraging dat…
Environmental Impacts on Behavioral Health Interventions: The Moderating Effect of Neighborhood Deprivation on a Mobile Health Treatment for Depression
Relatively little scholarly attention has been given to incorporating geographic principles into investigations of behavioral health intervention efficacy—where, and why, a behavioral health intervention might be more effective in one place versus another. We address this research gap by leveraging data from a randomized controlled trial in a post-hoc analysis to investigate whether socioeconomic deprivation in the residential neighborhood modera…
Predicting Self-Medication with Cannabis in Young Adults with Hazardous Cannabis Use
Using cannabis to reduce psychological and physical distress, referred to as self-medication, is a significant risk factor for cannabis use disorder. To better understand this high-risk behavior, a sample of 290 young adults (ages 18-25; 45.6% female) were recruited from two U.S. universities in January and February of 2020 to complete a survey about their cannabis use and self-medication. Results: seventy-six percent endorsed using cannabis to r…
Reducing Risk for Adolescent Substance Misuse with Text-Delivered Counseling to Adolescents and Parents
Background: Text-delivered prevention programs provide unique opportunities to deliver substance use prevention interventions to at-risk populations. Methods: A pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted to test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 4-week, automated personalized text-messaging prevention program, designed to reduce risk factors and increase protective factors associated with adolescent substance use …
Community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use in youth: A cross-cultural study
Associations between community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use were compared in a sample of early adolescents in low-income communities from the United States ( N = 151; M age = 12.71 years, standard deviation = 0.65; 50.3% female) and South Africa ( N = 175; M age = 12.55 years, standard deviation = 0.85; 64.6% female) using home interviews with youth and their maternal caregivers. Past year victimization was as…
Text Message Delivered Peer Network Counseling for Adolescent Smokers: A Randomized Controlled Trial
The role of tobacco outlet density in a smoking cessation intervention for urban youth
Young adolescents' perceived activity space risk, peer networks, and substance use
What Do Urban Black Mothers Tell Their Adolescents About Alcohol and Other Drugs
The current study utilized qualitative content analysis to examine messages conveyed about alcohol and other drugs by urban Black mothers ( N =130) with a personal, familial, or personal and familial history of problematic substance use to younger and older adolescents ( M = 15.2 years). Data from a two-cohort longitudinal sample revealed considerable similarity in themes across the younger and older cohorts. Results suggest Black mothers offer m…
Young adolescents' perceived activity space risk, peer networks, and substance use
The role of tobacco outlet density in a smoking cessation intervention for urban youth
Community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use in youth: A cross-cultural study
Associations between community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use were compared in a sample of early adolescents in low-income communities from the United States ( N = 151; M age = 12.71 years, standard deviation = 0.65; 50.3% female) and South Africa ( N = 175; M age = 12.55 years, standard deviation = 0.85; 64.6% female) using home interviews with youth and their maternal caregivers. Past year victimization was as…
What Do Urban Black Mothers Tell Their Adolescents About Alcohol and Other Drugs
The current study utilized qualitative content analysis to examine messages conveyed about alcohol and other drugs by urban Black mothers ( N =130) with a personal, familial, or personal and familial history of problematic substance use to younger and older adolescents ( M = 15.2 years). Data from a two-cohort longitudinal sample revealed considerable similarity in themes across the younger and older cohorts. Results suggest Black mothers offer m…
What Do Urban Black Mothers Tell Their Adolescents About Alcohol and Other Drugs
The current study utilized qualitative content analysis to examine messages conveyed about alcohol and other drugs by urban Black mothers ( N =130) with a personal, familial, or personal and familial history of problematic substance use to younger and older adolescents ( M = 15.2 years). Data from a two-cohort longitudinal sample revealed considerable similarity in themes across the younger and older cohorts. Results suggest Black mothers offer m…
Young adolescents' perceived activity space risk, peer networks, and substance use
Text Message Delivered Peer Network Counseling for Adolescent Smokers: A Randomized Controlled Trial
The role of tobacco outlet density in a smoking cessation intervention for urban youth
Community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use in youth: A cross-cultural study
Associations between community violence exposure, family management practices, and substance use were compared in a sample of early adolescents in low-income communities from the United States ( N = 151; M age = 12.71 years, standard deviation = 0.65; 50.3% female) and South Africa ( N = 175; M age = 12.55 years, standard deviation = 0.85; 64.6% female) using home interviews with youth and their maternal caregivers. Past year victimization was as…
Reducing Risk for Adolescent Substance Misuse with Text-Delivered Counseling to Adolescents and Parents
Background: Text-delivered prevention programs provide unique opportunities to deliver substance use prevention interventions to at-risk populations. Methods: A pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted to test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 4-week, automated personalized text-messaging prevention program, designed to reduce risk factors and increase protective factors associated with adolescent substance use …
Predicting Self-Medication with Cannabis in Young Adults with Hazardous Cannabis Use
Using cannabis to reduce psychological and physical distress, referred to as self-medication, is a significant risk factor for cannabis use disorder. To better understand this high-risk behavior, a sample of 290 young adults (ages 18-25; 45.6% female) were recruited from two U.S. universities in January and February of 2020 to complete a survey about their cannabis use and self-medication. Results: seventy-six percent endorsed using cannabis to r…
Urban and Rural Differences in the Efficacy of a Mobile Health Depression Treatment for Young Adults
Depression among young adults represents a growing health problem in the U.S., but access to effective treatment remains a challenge. Mobile health (mHealth) approaches promise to deliver accessible and effective depression treatment; however, questions remain regarding how mHealth depression treatment efficacy may vary geographically based on urban and rural environmental contexts. The present study addresses this knowledge gap by leveraging dat…
Environmental Impacts on Behavioral Health Interventions: The Moderating Effect of Neighborhood Deprivation on a Mobile Health Treatment for Depression
Relatively little scholarly attention has been given to incorporating geographic principles into investigations of behavioral health intervention efficacy—where, and why, a behavioral health intervention might be more effective in one place versus another. We address this research gap by leveraging data from a randomized controlled trial in a post-hoc analysis to investigate whether socioeconomic deprivation in the residential neighborhood modera…
Young Adults Advancing Through the Stages of Change: A Mediational Analysis of Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The Stages of Change (SoC) model explains addictive behavior change through 5 stages: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Limited evidence exists from randomized controlled trials testing the SoC model in Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD) treatments. The aim of this study was to test the indirect effects of Peer Network Counseling- text (PNC-txt), a text-message delivered motivational interv…
Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms Moderate Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment Effects: A Randomized Clinical Trial with Young Adults
A Methodological Case Example of Capturing Social-Spatial Effects on Behavioral Health Treatment Outcomes
Rural and urban variation in mobile health substance use disorder treatment mechanisms and efficacy
Residents of rural areas face significant barriers to substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, including poor access, stigma, lack of confidentiality, and distrust of mental health services, which may inhibit treatment engagement. Mobile health (mHealth) approaches offer personalized, private, and easily accessible SUD treatment for rural residents, but differences in treatment mechanisms and efficacy across rural and urban regions are unknown. Th…
Psychology (12 works) · Clinical Psychology (10 works) · Medicine (9 works) · Psychiatry (9 works) · Clinical Psychology (6 works) · Digital Mental Health Interventions (5 works) · Psychological intervention (5 works) · Randomized controlled trial (5 works) · Substance use (5 works) · Cannabis (4 works)