David R. (Randy) Black, PhD, MPH, HSPP, CHES, CPPE, FASHA, FSBM, FAAHB, FAAHE holds faculty and courtesy appointments in five different areas: Public Health, Health Sciences, Nutrition Science, Nursing, and the Purdue Polytechnic Institute -- Computer Information and Technology. 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 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 in reputed journals, participated in ~180 and another ~50 keynote or invited regional, national, and international presentations, and has regularly submitted and been successful in receiving grant funding. Throughout his career, he has served as a reviewer, been on the editorial board of 25 journals, and been an editor of 2 journals. He completed his doctoral degree at Stanford University 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 work also has focused on diabetes. His first faculty appointment was at University of Nebraska Medical Center in the Department of Preventive and Stress Medicine and his subsequent faculty appointments have been at Purdue University where he has been since 1984. He completed his Master of Public Health degree at San Diego State University and Master Degree (equivalent) in Strategic Planning at the U.S. Army War College.
Dr. Black’s primary research focus is population approaches and methods to ameliorate health. The methods used have been based on behavioral epidemiology and behavioral medicine concepts and principles that have been applied to a variety of disciples/topics. Articles on these topics have been used to propagate and investigate a community-based health service delivery model called the Stepped Approach Model (SAM) and that follows Occam’s razor. SAM focuses on providing community services in multiple health areas (e.g., obesity, eating disorders, nutrition, tobacco, alcohol, stress, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, and diabetes) identified as public health priorities and to mitigate morbidity (chronic disease), mortality, injury, and disability. SAM has also lead to concentration on “healthy weight,” accuracy of self-report body weight, age-approach health parameter norms, and development of screening tests. One current emphasis recruitment to intervention and program design (social marketing), social problem solving (a test translated into 9 different languages) and diabetes test, and application of technology to deliver weight management programs and identification of critical times to intervene. Most recent research is on communication strategies, 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.