11th Annual Ann Rankin Cowan Lecture

TALK TITLE: Accelerating Progress in Eating Disorders Prevention: A Call for Policy Translation Research and Training 

The societal burden of eating disorders and the need for prevention are clear and compelling. Progress in prevention, however, has been slow, in part because of the overwhelming focus on interventions targeted at individual-level behavior change and the underwhelming contributions from professionals outside of the clinical disciplines. Progress in the field can be accelerated, but only through a realignment of our priorities, which we must shift in two critical ways to build: 1) Translational research designed to inform policy and environmental changes with high potential for large-scale impact; and 2) Training initiatives that increase disciplinary and practice expertise to inform policy translation action, including the disciplines of public health, economics, health law, and more in addition to psychology. By prioritizing policy translational research and training, we can substantially accelerate the pace of progress in eating disorders prevention.