Genevieve Dunton, PhD, MPH

Genevieve Dunton, Ph.D, MPH is an Assistant Professor of Research in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Southern California. She earned a doctorate in Health Psychology from the University of California, Irvine and a Master of Public Health from the University of Southern California.

Dr. Dunton received post-doctoral training in physical activity, nutrition, and cancer prevention from the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program at the National Cancer Institution, where she worked in the Health Promotion Research Branch.

The objectives of her research are to explain and promote participation in physical activity and healthy dietary behaviors in children, adults, and families. This work is guided by a social-ecological perspective of behavior change, which takes into account the interplay between environmental, social, and individual variables. Her research considers how policy, community, neighborhood, and school contexts can influence physical activity either independently or through their impact on more proximal social and psychological factors.

Dr. Dunton uses real-time data capture strategies such as Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and Ecological Momentary Intervention (EMI) to investigate and influence activity and healthy eating. Mobile phones or PDA devices provide feedback or elicit responses through electronic texts accompanied by auditory signals that are programmed to occur at predetermined intervals throughout the day. She is currently the Principal Investigator on a study funded by the Active Living Research program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to examine the effects of the built environment on children’s physical activity contexts using EMA.

She is also a co-investigator on a 5-year study funded by the National Cancer Institute to determine the effects of a smart growth community on family obesity risk.

• Methodological Training for Social and Behavioral Research in Cancer Control
  NIH · T32CA298969 · May 1, 2026 – Apr 30, 2031 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Using real-time data capture to examine implicit attitudes as mediators of physical activity adherence in interventions
  NIH · R03CA292977 · Jul 3, 2024 – Jun 30, 2026 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Using real-time data capture to examine affective mechanisms as mediators of physical activity adherence in interventions
  NIH · R01CA272933 · Jul 8, 2022 – Jun 30, 2027 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Novel Statistical Models for Intensive Longitudinal Analyses of Cancer Control Behaviors
  NIH · R01CA240713 · Jul 1, 2019 – Aug 31, 2028 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
• Microtemporal Processes Underlying Health Behavior Adoption and Maintenance
  NIH · U01HL146327 · Aug 15, 2018 – Jul 31, 2023 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Novel Statistical Models for EMA Studies of Physical Activity
  NIH · R01HL121330 · May 1, 2014 – Apr 30, 2019 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
• Maternal Stress and Children's Obesity Risk
  NIH · R01HL119255 · Aug 8, 2013 – Jun 30, 2020 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Using Mobile Phones to Reduce Missing Data in Youth Activity Monitoring Studies
  NIH · R21HL108018 · Feb 24, 2012 – Jan 31, 2015 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator

• Momentary associations between perceived stress, dietary restriction, and eating behaviors in adolescents. J Pediatr Psychol. 2026 Jul 11.. View in PubMed
• Understanding the importance of social and environmental stressors in predicting maternal sleep quality during late pregnancy. Environ Res. 2026 Jun 13; 305(Pt 2):125013.. View in PubMed
• Preconception and early-pregnancy exposure to ambient air pollution and trajectories of depressive symptoms during pregnancy. Environ Health. 2026 Jun 02.. View in PubMed
• Ecological momentary assessment of momentary loneliness, body dissatisfaction, and dysregulated eating in adolescents. JCPP Adv. 2026 May 28.. View in PubMed
• Modeling intraindividual means and variances from ecological momentary assessment data: comparing standard computational formulas to mixed-effects location-scale model estimates. J Behav Med. 2026 Apr; 49(2):254-274.. View in PubMed
• Daily Ovarian Hormone Exposure and Loss of Control Eating in Adolescent Girls: A Stage 2 Registered Report. Int J Eat Disord. 2026 May 08.. View in PubMed
• An individual participant data meta-analysis of how physical activity relates to affective well-being in daily life. Nat Hum Behav. 2026 May 06.. View in PubMed
• Maternal Heat Shock Protein as a Potential Biomarker of Adaptation to Heat Stress during Pregnancy and Its Relation to Preterm Birth. Environ Sci Technol. 2026 May 12; 60(18):13323-13332.. View in PubMed
• Development and usability of a mobile ecological momentary assessment platform for dietary surveillance in the U.S. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2026 Apr 25; 23(1).. View in PubMed
• Prenatal heat stress and predicted postpartum cardiovascular disease risk: a longitudinal cohort study. Sci Rep. 2026 Apr 02; 16(1).. View in PubMed
• Delivering and evaluating digital therapeutic interventions to increase physical activity: Formative testing of engagement, compliance, and adherence. Digit Health. 2026 Jan-Dec; 12:20552076261435865.. View in PubMed
• An Early-Stage Digital Therapeutic Intervention to Enhance Affective Response During Physical Activity Among Adults With Overweight or Obesity: Benchmark-Driven Formative Testing Study. JMIR Hum Factors. 2026 Feb 20; 13:e71472.. View in PubMed
• Semantically enriching personal mobility data using OpenStreetMap: a case study using smartphone users’ frequently visited places. J Locat Based Serv. 2026 Jan 22.. View in PubMed
• Third-trimester diet and prenatal depression in the MADRES cohort. Nutrition. 2026 May; 145:113110.. View in PubMed
• Feasibility and acceptability of 7-day smartphone-based, activity-triggered Ecological Momentary Assessment among low-income older adults. Innov Aging. 2026; 10(2):igaf151.. View in PubMed
• Eating disorder symptom profiles and physical activity cognitions and motivations among emerging adults with physical activity intentions. Eat Behav. 2026 Jan; 60:102068.. View in PubMed
• Development and Usability of a Mobile Ecological Momentary Assessment Platform for Dietary Surveillance in the U.S. medRxiv. 2025 Dec 11.. View in PubMed
• Prenatal exposure to heat stress and postpartum depressive symptoms in the MADRES cohort in urban Los Angeles. Environ Res. 2026 Feb 15; 291:123527.. View in PubMed
• Within- and Between-Individual Compliance in Mobile Health: Joint Modeling Approach to Nonrandom Missingness in an Intensive Longitudinal Observational Study. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2025 Oct 30; 13:e65350.. View in PubMed
• Understanding Longitudinal Ecological Momentary Assessment Completion: Results From 12 Months of Burst Sampling in the TIME Study. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2025 Oct 22; 13:e67117.. View in PubMed
• When physical activity fails to satisfy important psychological needs: Associations with engagement and mental health. J Sports Sci. 2025 Dec; 43(24):3137-3145.. View in PubMed
• Associations Between Food Insecurity and Child BMI: Cross-Sectional Versus Longitudinal Mediational Analysis of Maternal Weight-Related Parenting Practices and Concerns. Matern Child Health J. 2025 Nov; 29(11):1630-1639.. View in PubMed
• Longitudinal User Engagement with Microinteraction Ecological Momentary Assessment (μEMA). Proc ACM Interact Mob Wearable Ubiquitous Technol. 2025 Sep; 9(3).. View in PubMed
• Using real-time data capture strategies and within-subject studies to better understand the physical activity health paradox. Br J Sports Med. 2025 Sep 02; 59(18):1273-1275.. View in PubMed
• Prevalence of Physical Activity Maintenance Across a 12-Month Study: Comparison of Accelerometer Indicators. J Phys Act Health. 2025 Oct 01; 22(10):1256-1269.. View in PubMed
• Ecological Momentary Assessment of Impulsivity and Overeating and Loss of Control Eating in Adolescents. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2026 01; 34(1):71-78.. View in PubMed
• Negative binomial mixed effects location-scale models for intensive longitudinal count-type physical activity data provided by wearable devices. Biometrics. 2025 Jul 03; 81(3).. View in PubMed
• Assessment of EMA binge-eating symptoms in Adolescents: Factor analysis and associations with social context and food types. Appetite. 2025 10 01; 214:108212.. View in PubMed
• Randomized trial of a digital therapeutics intervention to enhance affective response during physical activity: Protocol for the eMOTION study. Contemp Clin Trials. 2025 07; 154:107945.. View in PubMed
• Gestational Blood Pressure Trajectories and 5-Year Postpartum Hypertension Risk in the MADRES Study. JACC Adv. 2025 Apr; 4(4):101660.. View in PubMed
• Combining Ecological Momentary Assessment and Social Network Analysis to Study Youth Physical Activity and Environmental Influences: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Feasibility Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2025 Feb 21; 14:e68667.. View in PubMed
• Prenatal Psychosocial Stressors and Blood Pressure Across 4 Years Postpartum. Hypertension. 2025 May; 82(5):849-858.. View in PubMed
• Exploring person-centred sleep and rest-activity cycle dynamics over 6 months. J Sleep Res. 2025 Dec; 34(6):e14471.. View in PubMed
• Perceived Stress During Late Pregnancy and Infant Body Composition at 1 Month. J Endocr Soc. 2025 Jan 06; 9(2):bvae222.. View in PubMed
• Examining Whether Exercise Preference and Tolerance Moderate the Within-Subject Association Between Physical Activity Intention and Next-Day Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity. J Phys Act Health. 2025 Feb 01; 22(2):245-251.. View in PubMed
• The moderating effect of maternal modeling on age-related decline in children’s physical activity. J Fam Psychol. 2025 Feb; 39(1):77-86.. View in PubMed
• Ecological Momentary Assessment of Momentary Associations Between Availability of Physical Activity Space and Physical Activity Opportunities Among Children from Rural, Urban, and Suburban Locales. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024 11 28; 21(12).. View in PubMed
• Ask Less, Learn More: Adapting Ecological Momentary Assessment Survey Length by Modeling Question-Answer Information Gain. Proc ACM Interact Mob Wearable Ubiquitous Technol. 2024 Nov; 8(4).. View in PubMed
• Prenatal exposure to ambient air pollution and persistent postpartum depression. Sci Total Environ. 2024 Nov 25; 953:176089.. View in PubMed
• Personal and Social-Built Environmental Factors of Glucose Variability Among Multiethnic Groups of Adults With Type 2 Diabetes: Research Protocol Using Ecological Momentary Assessment, Continuous Glucose Monitoring, and Actigraphy. Res Nurs Health. 2024 12; 47(6):608-619.. View in PubMed
• Developing a Framework to Evaluate the Validity of Longitudinal Accelerometer-Based Indicators of Physical Activity Maintenance. J Phys Act Health. 2024 Oct 01; 21(10):961-962.. View in PubMed
• Smartphone GPS-Based Exposure to Greenspace and Walkability and Accelerometer-Assessed Physical Activity During Pregnancy and Early Postpartum-Evidence from the MADRES Cohort. J Urban Health. 2024 Dec; 101(6):1128-1142.. View in PubMed
• Burden and Inattentive Responding in a 12-Month Intensive Longitudinal Study: Interview Study Among Young Adults. JMIR Form Res. 2024 Aug 02; 8:e52165.. View in PubMed
• Identifying the Leading Sources of Saturated Fat and Added Sugar in U.S. Adults. Nutrients. 2024 Jul 30; 16(15).. View in PubMed
• Organophosphate ester flame retardant chemicals and maternal depression during pregnancy. Environ Res. 2024 Oct 15; 259:119581.. View in PubMed
• Effects of physical activity planning interventions on reducing sedentary behavior in parent-child dyads: A randomized controlled trial. Appl Psychol Health Well Being. 2024 11; 16(4):1840-1863.. View in PubMed
• Perceived stress and associations between physical activity, sedentary time, and interstitial glucose in healthy adolescents. Physiol Behav. 2024 09 01; 283:114617.. View in PubMed
• Spatial and temporal determinants of particulate matter peak exposures during pregnancy and early postpartum. Environ Adv. 2024 Oct; 17.. View in PubMed
• Joint effects of traffic-related air pollution and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy on maternal postpartum depressive and anxiety symptoms. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2025 Apr; 35(2):278-287.. View in PubMed
• The unseen patient: competing priorities between patients and providers when cannabis is used in pregnancy, a qualitative study. Front Glob Womens Health. 2024; 5:1355375.. View in PubMed
• Increased Risk of Gestational Hypertension by Periconceptional Exposure to Ambient Air Pollution and Effect Modification by Prenatal Depression. Hypertension. 2024 Jun; 81(6):1285-1295.. View in PubMed
• Maternal Dietary Patterns During Pregnancy Are Linked to Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy Among a Predominantly Low-Income US Hispanic/Latina Pregnancy Cohort. J Am Heart Assoc. 2024 03 05; 13(5):e029848.. View in PubMed
• GPS-derived environmental exposures during pregnancy and early postpartum – Evidence from the madres cohort. Sci Total Environ. 2024 Mar 25; 918:170551.. View in PubMed
• The temporal stability of maternal parenting style and child feeding practices: A six-wave longitudinal study. Appetite. 2024 04 01; 195:107231.. View in PubMed
• Prenatal exposures to organophosphate ester metabolites and early motor development in the MADRES cohort. Environ Pollut. 2024 Feb 01; 342:123131.. View in PubMed
• The Role of Social Support and Acculturation Factors on Postpartum Mental Health Among Latinas in the MADRES Pregnancy Cohort. J Immigr Minor Health. 2024 Feb; 26(1):72-80.. View in PubMed
• Investigating the day-level associations between affective variability and physical activity using ecological momentary assessment. Psychol Sport Exerc. 2024 01; 70:102542.. View in PubMed
• Poor Sleep Quality Increases Gestational Weight Gain Rate in Pregnant People: Findings from the MADRES Study. Res Sq. 2023 Sep 25.. View in PubMed
• Prenatal exposures to organophosphate ester metabolite mixtures and children’s neurobehavioral outcomes in the MADRES pregnancy cohort. Environ Health. 2023 09 22; 22(1):66.. View in PubMed
• Editorial: Motivation states and hedonic motivation for physical activity, exercise, and sport vs. sedentary behaviors. Front Sports Act Living. 2023; 5:1282118.. View in PubMed
• Depressive symptoms and physical activity among young adult survivors of childhood cancer. Psychooncology. 2023 10; 32(10):1598-1605.. View in PubMed
• Long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on children’s physical activity and sedentary behavior. Obes Sci Pract. 2024 Feb; 10(1):e710.. View in PubMed
• Preconceptional and prenatal exposure to air pollutants and risk of gestational diabetes in the MADRES prospective pregnancy cohort study. Lancet Reg Health Am. 2023 Sep; 25:100575.. View in PubMed
• Motivational Profile as a Predictor of Physical Activity Among US Adults During the Early Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Daily Diary Study. J Phys Act Health. 2023 10 01; 20(10):963-970.. View in PubMed
• E-cigarette weight and appetite control beliefs and e-cigarette initiation in young adults. Health Psychol. 2023 Sep; 42(9):668-673.. View in PubMed
• Adherence to Recess Guidelines in the United States Using Nationally Representative Data: Implications for Future Surveillance Efforts. J Sch Health. 2023 12; 93(12):1145-1155.. View in PubMed
• Affective Response During Real-World Physical Activity as an Intervention Mediator. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2023 10 01; 51(4):140-149.. View in PubMed
• Daily ovarian hormone exposure and loss of control eating in adolescent girls: A registered report. Int J Eat Disord. 2023 06; 56(6):1246-1253.. View in PubMed
• Sex-specific effects of prenatal organophosphate ester (OPE) metabolite mixtures and adverse infant birth outcomes in the maternal and developmental risks from environmental and social stressors (MADRES) pregnancy cohort. Environ Res. 2023 06 01; 226:115703.. View in PubMed
• An ecological momentary assessment study of affectively-charged motivational states and physical activity. Psychol Sport Exerc. 2023 07; 67:102423.. View in PubMed
• Assessing basic and higher-level psychological needs satisfied through physical activity. Front Psychol. 2023; 14:1023556.. View in PubMed
• The ILHBN: challenges, opportunities, and solutions from harmonizing data under heterogeneous study designs, target populations, and measurement protocols. Transl Behav Med. 2023 01 20; 13(1):7-16.. View in PubMed
• A Vegetable, Oil, and Fruit Dietary Pattern in Late Pregnancy is Linked to Reduced Risks of Adverse Birth Outcomes in a Predominantly Low-Income Hispanic and Latina Pregnancy Cohort. J Nutr. 2023 01 14; 152(12):2837-2846.. View in PubMed
• Motivational and self-regulatory processes associated with weight-related parenting behaviors. Obes Pillars. 2023 Mar; 5:100049.. View in PubMed
• Examining whether affectively-charged motivations predict subsequent affective response during physical activity: An ecological momentary assessment study. Front Sports Act Living. 2022; 4:1029144.. View in PubMed
• Association Between Ambient Air Pollution and Birth Weight by Maternal Individual- and Neighborhood-Level Stressors. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 10 03; 5(10):e2238174.. View in PubMed
• Exploring the Effects of Perceived Stress on the Within-Person Relationships Between Daily Activity Levels and Sleep in Women: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study. Int J Behav Med. 2023 Aug; 30(4):578-583.. View in PubMed
• Bidirectional Associations Between Physical Activity and Pain Among Older Adults: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study. J Aging Phys Act. 2023 04 01; 31(2):240-248.. View in PubMed
• Associations of Maternal and Paternal Parenting Practices With Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Physical Activity: Preliminary Findings From an Ecological Momentary Study. JMIR Form Res. 2022 Aug 10; 6(8):e38326.. View in PubMed
• Food insecurity, hunger, stress, and homelessness among young adults. Health Psychol. 2022 Aug; 41(8):559-565.. View in PubMed
• Patterns of Objectively Measured Sedentary Time and Emotional Disorder Symptoms Among Youth. J Pediatr Psychol. 2022 07 19; 47(7):757-768.. View in PubMed
• Investigating Microtemporal Processes Underlying Health Behavior Adoption and Maintenance: Protocol for an Intensive Longitudinal Observational Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2022 Jul 14; 11(7):e36666.. View in PubMed
• Temporal stability of behavior, temporal cue-behavior associations, and physical activity habit strength among mothers with school-aged children. Psychol Health. 2022 Jun 27; 1.. View in PubMed
• Day-level associations of physical activity and sedentary time in mother-child dyads across three years: a multi-wave longitudinal study using accelerometers. J Behav Med. 2022 10; 45(5):702-715.. View in PubMed
• Understanding daily life experiences of women who smoke: The role of smoking-related weight control expectancies. Addict Behav. 2022 11; 134:107413.. View in PubMed
• Time-Varying Associations Between Device-Based and Ecological Momentary Assessment-Reported Sedentary Behaviors and the Concurrent Affective States Among Adolescents: Proof-of-Concept Study. JMIR Form Res. 2022 Jun 10; 6(6):e37743.. View in PubMed
• Children’s Daily Negative Affect Patterns and Food Consumption on Weekends: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2022 07; 54(7):600-609.. View in PubMed
• Examining Whether Physical Activity Location Choices Were Associated With Weekly Physical Activity Maintenance Across 13 Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Emerging Adults. J Phys Act Health. 2022 06 01; 19(6):446-455.. View in PubMed
• A chocolate cake or a chocolate vape? Young adults describe their relationship with food and weight in the context of nicotine vaping. Appetite. 2022 Aug 01; 175:106075.. View in PubMed
• Physical Activity and Sedentary Time Among Mothers of School-Aged Children: Differences in Accelerometer-Derived Pattern Metrics by Demographic, Employment, and Household Factors. Womens Health Issues. 2022 Sep-Oct; 32(5):490-498.. View in PubMed
• Momentary intentions and perceived behavioral control are within-person predictors of sedentary leisure time: preliminary findings from an ecological momentary assessment study in adolescents. J Behav Med. 2022 06; 45(3):391-403.. View in PubMed
• Contextual Biases in Microinteraction Ecological Momentary Assessment (μEMA) Non-response. Proc ACM Interact Mob Wearable Ubiquitous Technol. 2022 Mar; 6(1).. View in PubMed
• How acute affect dynamics impact longitudinal changes in physical activity among children. J Behav Med. 2022 06; 45(3):451-460.. View in PubMed
• Time-activity and daily mobility patterns during pregnancy and early postpartum – evidence from the MADRES cohort. Spat Spatiotemporal Epidemiol. 2022 06; 41:100502.. View in PubMed
• Daily Associations of Air Pollution and Pediatric Asthma Risk Using the Biomedical REAI-Time Health Evaluation (BREATHE) Kit. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 03 17; 19(6).. View in PubMed
• Association of Breastfeeding Duration with 12-Month Postpartum Blood Lipids in a Predominately Lower-Income Hispanic Pregnancy Cohort in Los Angeles. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 03 04; 19(5).. View in PubMed
• Intensive Longitudinal Data Collection Using Microinteraction Ecological Momentary Assessment: Pilot and Preliminary Results. JMIR Form Res. 2022 Feb 09; 6(2):e32772.. View in PubMed
• Perceived vulnerability to immigration policies among postpartum Hispanic/Latina women in the MADRES pregnancy cohort before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Womens Health (Lond). 2022 Jan-Dec; 18:17455057221125103.. View in PubMed
• Dyadic Effects of Pokémon GO on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in Mothers and Children. Int J Exerc Sci. 2022; 15(5):142-151.. View in PubMed
• Household pesticide exposures and infant gross motor development in the MADRES cohort. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol. 2022 03; 36(2):220-229.. View in PubMed

• Leventhal, Adam
• Goran, Michael
• Unger, Jennifer
• Peters, Anne
• Huh, Jimi
• Page, Kathleen