Douglas Cary Smith

Douglas Cary Smith is a Professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, where he also serves as Director of the Center for Prevention Research and Development (CPRD). He holds additional affiliations with the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. His work focuses on substance use disorder treatment and prevention, particularly for adolescents and young adults in high-risk populations like the juvenile justice system and incarcerated individuals.

Dr. Smith earned his BS in Psychology from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in 1996, followed by an MSW (2000) and PhD in Social Work (2006) from the same institution and the University of Iowa respectively.

His research interests emphasize empirically-supported treatments such as Motivational Interviewing and Strengths Oriented Family Therapy (SOFT), with recent projects exploring alcohol use in young adults (funded by NIAAA) and the impact of criminal justice labeling on adolescent girls. He has also studied masculinity-related stigma barriers in military populations.

Dr. Smith’s 2024 publications address long-term recovery perspectives, adolescent substance use perceptions, interventions for formerly incarcerated men, and legal system stigmatization dynamics. His 2023 work examines help-seeking challenges among veterans.

He received the Deborah K. Padgett Early Career Achievement Award (2012) for his contributions. His grants include collaborative Lemann/FAPESP initiatives and NIAAA-funded treatment development. As CPRD Director, he oversees prevention research programs and teams focused on translational science.