Alexander Rothman

Alexander Rothman is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus. His primary research focuses on applying social psychological theory to health promotion and illness prevention, with expertise in health communication, behavior change, and intervention design. He has held leadership roles, including Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs at the University of Minnesota, President of the Society for Health Psychology (APA), and founding President of the Social Personality and Health Network. Dr. Rothman earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from Yale University in 1993.

His research interests include the mechanisms underlying health behavior change, message framing, and the integration of interpersonal processes into health behavior theories. He has led NIH-funded projects on behavioral weight loss, opioid prescription interventions, and falls prevention in older adults. Notable awards include the APA’s Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contribution to Health Psychology (2002) and the University of Minnesota’s Outstanding Contributions to Graduate and Professional Education Award (2018), which recognized his teaching excellence and induction as a Distinguished University Teaching Professor.

Rothman co-chairs the NCI Cognitive, Affective, and Social Processes in Health Research Group and the NIH Behavior Maintenance Workshop. He advocates for reproducibility in science through roles like the Many Faces of Reproducibility Project and as a Resident Fellow at the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science.

• Education: Ph.D. in Psychology, Yale University, 1993
• Key Projects:
  • NIH-funded studies on behavioral weight loss and opioid prescribing
  • NCI-sponsored work on health behavior theory
  • Research on conflicting health information and its societal impacts
• Awards: APA Early Career Award, Fellowships in multiple societies, University of Minnesota’s Teaching Excellence Award

His recent work explores the effects of healthcare provider advice on patient behavior, the role of friendship in health outcomes, and the psychological processes behind long-term behavior maintenance.