Jessica Powers, Ph.D.
- Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
- Assistant Scientist, Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment
Contact Info
Personal Links
Biography —
Dr. Powers’ research is broadly focused on pain, substance use (e.g., nicotine/tobacco, alcohol, opioids, cannabis), and other health behavior in the context of cancer, chronic pain, and chronic/serious illness. More recently, she has an emerging line of research focused on substance use across pregnancy and the perinatal period. Dr. Powers’ research program utilizes a multi-method approach (e.g., large national data, qualitative research, laboratory paradigms) to identify pain-related psychological mechanisms to ultimately inform development of tailored and accessible intervention approaches for individuals with pain who use substances. Dr. Powers completed a T32 postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Prevention and Control at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and currently serves as incoming chair of the Pain Special Interest Group of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. Dr. Powers earned her BA in Psychology from Northwestern University and MS in Clinical Psychology from Syracuse University. She completed her Pre-Doctoral Clinical Internship at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in the Health Psychology/Behavioral Medicine Track and earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Syracuse University in 2023.
Education —
Specialization
PSYC 350 (Psychological Disorders) in Spring 2026.
Research —
- Chronic Pain
- Addiction/Substance use disorders
- Substance use (nicotine/tobacco, alcohol, opioids, cannabis)
- Cancer
- Pregnancy
- Chronic Illness
- Intervention development
- Large data
- Laboratory paradigms
- Comorbidities
Selected Publications —
Powers, J. M., LaRowe, L. R., Rubenstein, D., Paice, J. A., Hitsman, B., & Rini, C. M. (2025). Relationship between pain and nonopioid substance use in two national samples of cancer survivors. Cancer, 131(4), e35701. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.35701
Powers, J. M., Maloney, S. F., Sharma, E., & Stroud, L. R. (2024). Use and co-use of tobacco and cannabis before, during, and after pregnancy: A longitudinal analysis of waves 1-5 of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 38(7), 785–795. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0001004
Rubenstein, D., McClernon, F. J., Powers, J. M., Aston, E. R., Keefe, F. J., & Sweitzer, M. M. (2023). Pain is associated with exclusive use and co-use of tobacco and cannabis: Findings from Wave 5 (2018-2019) of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study. Addictive Behaviors, 146, 107814. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2023.107814
Powers, J. M., Maisto, S. A., Zvolensky, M. J., Heckman, B. W., & Ditre, J. W. (2023). Longitudinal Associations Between Pain and Use of Cigarettes and E-cigarettes in the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 25(3), 404–411. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntac197
Zale, E. L., Powers, J. M., & Ditre, J. W. (2021). Cognitive-Affective Transdiagnostic Factors Associated With Vulnerability to Alcohol and Prescription Opioid Use in the Context of Pain. Alcohol Research: Current Reviews, 41(1), 08. https://doi.org/10.35946/arcr.v41.1.08
Ditre, J. W., Heckman, B. W., LaRowe, L. R., & Powers, J. M. (2021). Pain Status as a Predictor of Smoking Cessation Initiation, Lapse, and Relapse. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 23(1), 186–194. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntaa111
Powers, J. M., Zvolensky, M. J., & Ditre, J. W. (2019). An integrative review of personalized feedback interventions for pain and alcohol. Current Opinion in Psychology, 30, 48–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.01.013
Selected Presentations —
Powers, J. M., Hosseinian, Z., Lehan, A., Melendez, A., Shelby, R. A., Yanez, B. R., Somers, T. J., Keefe, F. J., Kimmick, G. G., Paice, J. A., Rini, C. M. (March, 2025). Expectancies for Alcohol Analgesia are Related to Hazardous Alcohol Use, Alcohol Use Problems, and Greater Pain Catastrophizing among Breast Cancer Survivors with Arthralgia. In L. R. LaRowe (Chair) Pain and Substance Use in Complex Populations: Integrating Epidemiological and Clinical Perspectives. Symposium presented at the 46th annual meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, San Francisco, CA.
Powers, J. M., Jao, N. C., Gollan, J. K., Schnoll, R. B., & Hitsman, B. (March, 2025). Effects of Behavioral Activation for Smoking Cessation on Bodily Pain among Adults with Current or Past Major Depressive Disorder. In A. H Weinberger (Chair) Novel translational research on pain and tobacco use: Examining relationships from laboratory to clinical research. Symposium presented at the 31st annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco, New Orleans, LA.
Powers, J. M., Maloney, S. F., Sharma, E., & Stroud, L. R. (March, 2024). Use and Co-Use of Tobacco and Cannabis Before, During, and After Pregnancy: A Longitudinal Analysis of Waves 1-5 of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study. In N. De Genna (Chair), Thinking Outside the Box to Reduce Health Inequities in Prenatal Tobacco Exposure. Symposium presented the 30th annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Awards & Honors —
Postdoctoral Health Psychology Award for Clinical Excellence
Society for Health Psychology (Division 38)
American Psychological Association
NIDA Diversity Scholars Travel Award
Office of Research Training, Diversity, and Disparities
National Institute on Drug Abuse/National Institutes of Health
Graduate Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Work
Graduate School
Syracuse University
Grants & Other Funded Activity —
Previous Grant Funding and Fellowships:
- NIH/NCI (T32CA193193) Behavioral and Psychosocial Research Training in Cancer Prevention and Control
- NIH/NIDA NRSA F31 Fellowship (F31DA054717) Longitudinal Associations Between Pain and Use of Cigarettes and E-Cigarettes in the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study
Service —
- Editorial Board Member, Annals of Behavioral Medicine
- Incoming Chair, Pain Special Interest Group, Society of Behavioral Medicine
- Trainee Network Advisory Council, Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco
Memberships —
- Society of Behavioral Medicine
- Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco
- American Psychological Association
- Division 38: Health Psychology
- Division 50: Addiction Psychology
- United States Association for the Study of Pain