Journal of Nutrition and Health Sciences

Dr. David R. (Randy) Black, PhD, MPH, HSPP, CHES, CPPE, FASHA, FSBM, FAAHB, FAAHE is a distinguished scholar. He is Associate Director of the Purdue Homeland Security Institute. He is fellow of five different health organizations and has received ~48 federal, national, state, organization, and university awards or recognitions for his contributions to public health and most recently in Homeland Security for service, scholarship, and grantsmanship. He has participated in the publication of 20 books and 34 book chapters. He has published ~150 peer-review articles, participated in ~180 and another ~50 invited regional, national, and international presentations, and has regularly submitted and been successful in receiving grant funding. He completed his doctoral degree at Stanford University in Psychology and a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the Stanford Heart Disease Prevention Program and Laboratory for the Study of Behavioral Medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine. His primary responsibility as a post-doc was to conduct field studies for the Stanford 3 and 5 City studies for weight management to impact chronic diseases and identify determinants for successful participation in nutrition-physical activity focused “minimal” interventions. His research in the weight management nutrition-physical activity area began almost 4 decades ago. His first faculty appointment was at University of Nebraska Medical Center in the Department of Preventive and Stress Medicine and his subsequent faculty appointment has been at Purdue University where he has been since 1984. He completed his Master of Public Health degree at San Diego State University. 

Dr. David R. (Randy) Black primary research focus is on apply behavioral epidemiology and behavioral medicine concepts and principles to a variety of disciples/topics such as homeland security, service delivery programs that follow Occam’s razor, eating disorders, and “healthy” weight management (proper nutrition and age-related physical activity, development of screening tests, and psychometrically valid and reliable tests). Articles on these topics also have been used to propagate and investigate a community-based health service delivery model called the Stepped Approach Model (SAM).  SAM focuses on providing community services in multiple health areas (e.g., nutrition, tobacco, alcohol, stress, high blood pressure, and physical inactivity) identified as public health priorities and to mitigate morbidity (chronic disease), mortality, injury, and disability. One of the current foci is on recruitment and program design (social marketing), social problem solving (a test translated into 9 different languages), and application of technology to deliver weight management programs and investigate catastrophic events. Most recent research focus is on social media and identifying determinants of health behavior outcomes or events by using technology (such as Radian6) to investigate social media (e.g., Twitter, blogs, Facebook) and to evaluate health behavior interventions that are media based. Trained peer helper for primary prevention intervention has been a research and scholarly focus for over 3 decades.

Research interests are listed below (keywords):

• Stepped Approach Model (service delivery models)
• Occam’s razor or minimal intervention (the simplest intervention that works) and low cost service providers (trained peer helpers)
• Weight management interventions (“healthy weight”) and eating disorder – over and under nutrition
• Social Problem Solving Inventory for Adolescents published in 9 languages and reviewed in Buros Mental Measurement Yearbook.
• Social media investigation using technology and evaluation of interventions technologically delivered
• Technology to evaluate and catastrophic events and to identify determinants