Thomas William Valente, PhD

Thomas W. Valente, PhD, is a Professor in the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Division of Health Behavior Research, Institute for Prevention Research, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California. He is author of Social Networks and Health: Models, Methods, and Applications (2010, Oxford University Press); Evaluating Health Promotion Programs (2002, Oxford University Press); Network Models of the Diffusion of Innovations (1995, Hampton Press); and over 250 articles and chapters (as of January 2024) on social networks, behavior change, and program evaluation. Valente uses social network analysis, health communication, and mathematical models to implement and evaluate health promotion programs designed to prevent tobacco and substance abuse, unintended fertility, and STD/HIV infections. He is also engaged in mapping community coalitions and collaborations to improve health care delivery and reduce healthcare disparities. He is currently working on specifications for network models of diffusion and contagion with the R package NetdiffuseR; and is also well-known for his work developing network models of program implementation and network interventions.

• Annenberg School for Communication, Los Angeles — PhD — 06/1991 — Communication

• Using Social Network Analysis to Understand Peer Influences on ENDS Use
  NIH · R01DA051843 · Sep 1, 2020 – Jul 31, 2025 · Role: Principal Investigator
• The Global Diffusion of Tobacco Control
  NIH · R01CA157577 · May 1, 2012 – Mar 31, 2019 · Role: Principal Investigator
• Integrating Social, Behavioral & Preventive Sciences to Reduce Children's Caries
  NIH · R34DE022272 · Sep 15, 2011 – Mar 31, 2014 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
• Social networks and networking that put adolescents at high risk
  NIH · RC1AA019239 · Sep 30, 2009 – Aug 31, 2012 · Role: Principal Investigator
• IDU NETWORK AS REVEALED BY NEEDLE EXCHANGE DATA
  NIH · R29DA010172 · Sep 25, 1996 – Feb 28, 2002 · Role: Principal Investigator

• Exposure to e-Cigarette Posts Across Social Media Platforms and Its Associations With Susceptibility and e-Cigarette Use: Comparative Cross-Sectional Study of High Schoolers in Jalisco (Mexico) and Southern California (United States). JMIR Pediatr Parent. 2026 Mar 13; 9:e85376.. View in PubMed
• Imposter syndrome and alcohol use among graduate students: An exploratory study. Alcohol. 2026 02; 130:33-39.. View in PubMed
• Increasing Equity Through Technology: A Comparison of Opinion Leader Identification Methods in Primary Care. Inquiry. 2025 Jan-Dec; 62:469580251370512.. View in PubMed
• Impact of the Sources of Strength Peer Leader Program on Suicide Attempt Rates in 40 High Schools: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial. School Ment Health. 2026; 18(2):509-525.. View in PubMed
• Network Dynamics of Social Influence on E-cigarette Use Among an Ethnically Diverse Adolescent Cohort. Nicotine Tob Res. 2025 Aug 22; 27(9):1583-1590.. View in PubMed
• Social network influences on adolescent substance use: Exposure, perceptions, and ethnicity. Soc Sci Med. 2025 Sep; 381:118290.. View in PubMed
• The Impact of Social Norms on Diffusion Dynamics: A Simulation of E-Cigarette Use Behavior. Health Educ Behav. 2025 08; 52(4):428-438.. View in PubMed
• “We worked together to change things about our lives”: a longitudinal qualitative analysis exploring Hispanic/Latino and Somali immigrant health promoters’ perspectives on a social network intervention to address cardiovascular disease disparities. BMC Public Health. 2025 Mar 01; 25(1):826.. View in PubMed
• Considerations for Social Networks and Health Data Sharing: An Overview. Ann Epidemiol. 2025 02; 102:28-35.. View in PubMed
• Socio-ecological factors linked with changes in adults’ dietary intake in Los Angeles County during the peak of the coronavirus 2019 pandemic. Public Health Nutr. 2024 May 07; 27(1):e133.. View in PubMed
• Healthy immigrant community study protocol: A randomized controlled trial of a social network intervention for cardiovascular risk reduction among Hispanic and Somali adults. Contemp Clin Trials. 2024 03; 138:107465.. View in PubMed
• Young adult peer crowds, e-cigarette advertising exposure, and e-cigarette use: Test of a mediation model. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2024 Mar 01; 256:111064.. View in PubMed
• Impact of social networks and norms on e-cigarette use among adolescents in Southern California: a prospective cohort study. BMJ Public Health. 2023; 1(1).. View in PubMed
• Social networks and violence victimization and perpetration among youth: A longitudinal analysis. Am J Community Psychol. 2024 06; 73(3-4):408-418.. View in PubMed
• Leveraging Social Networks to Integrate Depression Treatment into Primary Health and Tuberculosis Care in Brazil. Curr Psychiatry Res Rev. 2024; 20(4):350-365.. View in PubMed
• Social Network Influences on Adolescent E-cigarette Use. Subst Use Misuse. 2023; 58(6):780-786.. View in PubMed
• E-Cigarette-Related Health Beliefs Expressed on Twitter Within the U.S. AJPM Focus. 2023 Jun; 2(2):100067.. View in PubMed
• Diffusion effects of a sexual violence prevention program leveraging youth-adult partnerships. Am J Community Psychol. 2023 06; 71(3-4):344-354.. View in PubMed
• A Culturally Tailored Narrative Decreased Resistance to COVID-19 Vaccination Among Latinas. Am J Health Promot. 2023 03; 37(3):381-385.. View in PubMed
• Smoking-related psychosocial beliefs and justifications among smokers in India: Findings from Tobacco Control Policy (TCP) India Surveys. BMC Public Health. 2022 09 13; 22(1):1738.. View in PubMed
• Social networks of oncology clinicians as a means for increasing survivorship clinic referral. Commun Med (Lond). 2022; 2:89.. View in PubMed
• A comparison of peer change agent selection methods: Evidence from a high-school based suicide preventive intervention. BMC Public Health. 2022 05 16; 22(1):985.. View in PubMed
• The stability of youth popular opinion leaders selected over time using social network analysis. Am J Community Psychol. 2022 09; 70(1-2):202-210.. View in PubMed
• Network characteristics of a referral system for patients with hypertension in Western Kenya: results from the Strengthening Referral Networks for Management of Hypertension Across the Health System (STRENGTHS) study. BMC Health Serv Res. 2022 Mar 07; 22(1):315.. View in PubMed
• Diagnostic role of internal mammary lymph node involvement in tuberculous pleurisy: a multicenter study. Pulmonology. 2024 Jul-Aug; 30(4):330-336.. View in PubMed
• Adolescent Body Mass Index and Exposure to Peers with Overweight and Obesity: A Structural Equation Model Approach to Longitudinal Network Data. Child Obes. 2022 Oct; 18(7):445-453.. View in PubMed
• Egocentric social network characteristics and cardiovascular risk among patients with hypertension or diabetes in western Kenya: a cross-sectional analysis from the BIGPIC trial. BMJ Open. 2021 09 02; 11(9):e049610.. View in PubMed
• Evaluation of a Nurse-Delivered Pre-Chemotherapy Educational Intervention to Increase Knowledge and Reduce Anxiety Among Ethnically Diverse Patients. J Cancer Educ. 2021 08; 36(4):728-734.. View in PubMed
• Leveraging Emergent Social Networks to Reduce Sedentary Behavior in Low-Income Parents With Preschool-Aged Children. Sage Open. 2021 Jul-Sep; 11(3).. View in PubMed
• Group Medical Visit and Microfinance Intervention for Patients With Diabetes or Hypertension in Kenya. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2021 04 27; 77(16):2007-2018.. View in PubMed
• Use of Social Network Analysis to Identify Popular Opinion Leaders for a Youth-Led Sexual Violence Prevention Initiative. Violence Against Women. 2022 02; 28(2):664-685.. View in PubMed
• Adolescent Peers and Prevention: Network Patterns of Sexual Violence Attitudes and Bystander Actions. J Interpers Violence. 2022 07; 37(13-14):NP12398-NP12426.. View in PubMed
• Social networks in patients hospitalized with preventable conditions for heart disease and diabetes in Hawai’i by health literacy. Chronic Illn. 2022 09; 18(3):517-531.. View in PubMed
• Disrupting the COVID-19 Misinfodemic With Network Interventions: Network Solutions for Network Problems. Am J Public Health. 2021 03; 111(3):514-519.. View in PubMed
• Identifying student opinion leaders to lead e-cigarette interventions: protocol for a randomized controlled pragmatic trial. Trials. 2021 Jan 06; 22(1):31.. View in PubMed
• A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial to Increase PrEP Uptake for HIV Prevention: 55-Week Results From PrEPChicago. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2021 01 01; 86(1):31-37.. View in PubMed
• Effects of parental presence during induction of anesthesia on operative and perioperative times in pediatric patients undergoing adenotonsillectomy. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Jan; 140:110515.. View in PubMed
• Implementation of a cluster randomized controlled trial: Identifying student peer leaders to lead E-cigarette interventions. Addict Behav. 2021 03; 114:106726.. View in PubMed
• Correction to: Human-centered design as a guide to intervention planning for non-communicable diseases: the BIGPIC study from Western Kenya. BMC Health Serv Res. 2020 Aug 12; 20(1):738.. View in PubMed
• Corrigendum to “Network influences on policy implementation: Evidence from a global health treaty” [Soc. Sci. Med.] 222 (February 2019) 188-197. Soc Sci Med. 2020 08; 258:112245.. View in PubMed
• Associations between network-level acculturation, individual-level acculturation, and substance use among Hispanic adolescents. J Ethn Subst Abuse. 2022 Apr-Jun; 21(2):439-456.. View in PubMed
• Human-centered design as a guide to intervention planning for non-communicable diseases: the BIGPIC study from Western Kenya. BMC Health Serv Res. 2020 May 12; 20(1):415.. View in PubMed
• Algorithms and Health Misinformation: A Case Study of Vaccine Books on Amazon. J Health Commun. 2020 05 03; 25(5):394-401.. View in PubMed
• Examining the Role of Weight Status and Individual Attributes on Adolescent Social Relations. J Adolesc Health. 2020 07; 67(1):108-114.. View in PubMed
• The Connectedness of Mental Health Providers Referring Patients to a Treatment Study for Post-Traumatic Stress: A Social Network Study. Adm Policy Ment Health. 2020 03; 47(2):197-209.. View in PubMed
• Diffusion/Contagion Processes on Social Networks. Health Educ Behav. 2020 04; 47(2):235-248.. View in PubMed
• Gender Differences in Socio-ecological Determinants of Alcohol Use Among Hispanic Adolescents. J Sch Health. 2020 02; 90(2):99-106.. View in PubMed
• Strengthening Referral Networks for Management of Hypertension Across the Health System (STRENGTHS) in western Kenya: a study protocol of a cluster randomized trial. Trials. 2019 Sep 09; 20(1):554.. View in PubMed
• Social network interventions for health behaviours and outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS Med. 2019 09; 16(9):e1002890.. View in PubMed
• Smoking Diffusion through Networks of Diverse, Urban American Adolescents over the High School Period. J Health Soc Behav. 2019 09; 60(3):362-376.. View in PubMed
• Peer-adult network structure and suicide attempts in 38 high schools: implications for network-informed suicide prevention. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2019 10; 60(10):1065-1075.. View in PubMed
• Perceived Social Acceptability and Longitudinal Trends in Adolescent Cigarette Smoking. Prev Sci. 2019 08; 20(6):824-832.. View in PubMed
• Strategies for Effective Stakeholder Engagement in Strengthening Referral Networks for Management of Hypertension Across Health Systems in Kenya. Glob Heart. 2019 06; 14(2):173-179.. View in PubMed
• Involving end-users in the design of an audit and feedback intervention in the emergency department setting – a mixed methods study. BMC Health Serv Res. 2019 Apr 29; 19(1):270.. View in PubMed
• Network influences on policy implementation: Evidence from a global health treaty. Soc Sci Med. 2019 02; 222:188-197.. View in PubMed
• Diffusion of a Peer-Led Suicide Preventive Intervention Through School-Based Student Peer and Adult Networks. Front Psychiatry. 2018; 9:598.. View in PubMed
• Overlooked Threats to Respondent Driven Sampling Estimators: Peer Recruitment Reality, Degree Measures, and Random Selection Assumption. AIDS Behav. 2018 Jul; 22(7):2340-2359.. View in PubMed
• Interpersonal communication regarding pregnancy-related services: friends versus health professionals as conduits for information. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2018 04 12; 18(1):97.. View in PubMed
• Hygiene and Health: Who Do Mothers in Vanuatu Communicate with about Health? Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 03 03; 15(3). File K, Valente T , McLaws ML . . View in PubMed
• Differences in time to injection onset by drug in California: Implications for the emerging heroin epidemic. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018 04 01; 185:253-259.. View in PubMed
• Structural characteristics of the online social networks of maltreated youth and offline sexual risk behavior. Child Abuse Negl. 2018 11; 85:209-219.. View in PubMed
• An exploration of the Facebook social networks of smokers and non-smokers. PLoS One. 2017; 12(11):e0187332.. View in PubMed
• Coding communications across time: Documenting changes in interaction patterns across adopter categories. Netw Sci (Camb Univ Press). 2017 Dec; 5(4):441-460.. View in PubMed
• Structural analysis of health-relevant policy-making information exchange networks in Canada. Implement Sci. 2017 09 20; 12(1):116.. View in PubMed
• PrEP Chicago: A randomized controlled peer change agent intervention to promote the adoption of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention among young Black men who have sex with men. Clin Trials. 2018 02; 15(1):44-52.. View in PubMed
• Putting the network in network interventions. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2017 09 05; 114(36):9500-9501.. View in PubMed
• “You See Yourself Like in a Mirror”: The Effects of Internet-Mediated Personal Networks on Body Image and Eating Disorders. Health Commun. 2018 09; 33(9):1166-1176.. View in PubMed
• Care coordination in epilepsy: Measuring neurologists’ connectivity using social network analysis. Epilepsy Behav. 2017 08; 73:31-35.. View in PubMed
• Bridging Income Generation with Group Integrated Care for cardiovascular risk reduction: Rationale and design of the BIGPIC study. Am Heart J. 2017 Jun; 188:175-185.. View in PubMed
• Bromine soil/sediment enrichment in tidal salt marshes as a potential indicator of climate changes driven by solar activity: New insights from W coast Portuguese estuaries. Sci Total Environ. 2017 Feb 15; 580:324-338.. View in PubMed
• Adolescent Social Networks and Alcohol Use: Variability by Gender and Type. Subst Use Misuse. 2017 03 21; 52(4):477-487.. View in PubMed
• An Appraisal of Social Network Theory and Analysis as Applied to Public Health: Challenges and Opportunities. Annu Rev Public Health. 2017 Mar 20; 38:103-118.. View in PubMed
• Three Eras in Global Tobacco Control: How Global Governance Processes Influenced Online Tobacco Control Networking. Glob Health Gov. 2016; 10(2):138-150.. View in PubMed
• Popularity Breeds Contempt: The Evolution of Reputational Dislike Relations and Friendships in High School. Soc Networks. 2017 Jan; 48:100-109.. View in PubMed
• Measuring sustainment of prevention programs and initiatives: a study protocol. Implement Sci. 2016 Jul 16; 11:95.. View in PubMed
• NETWORK STRUCTURE, MULTIPLEXITY, AND EVOLUTION AS INFLUENCES ON COMMUNITY-BASED PARTICIPATORY INTERVENTIONS. J Community Psychol. 2016 Aug; 44(6):781-798.. View in PubMed
• Hispanic/Latino Adolescents’ Alcohol Use: Influence of Family Structure, Perceived Peer Norms, and Family Members’ Alcohol Use. Am J Health Educ. 2016; 47(4):253-261.. View in PubMed
• Characterizing implementation strategies using a systems engineering survey and interview tool: a comparison across 10 prevention programs for drug abuse and HIV sexual risk behavior. Implement Sci. 2016 May 17; 11:70.. View in PubMed
• Diffusion of an Evidence-Based Smoking Cessation Intervention Through Facebook: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Am J Public Health. 2016 Jun; 106(6):1130-5.. View in PubMed
• Strategies for Disseminating Information on Biomedical Research on Autism to Hispanic Parents. J Autism Dev Disord. 2016 Mar; 46(3):1038-50.. View in PubMed
• A social network analysis of supportive interactions on prenatal sites. Digit Health. 2016 Jan-Dec; 2:2055207616628700.. View in PubMed
• What’s love got to do with it? Adolescent romantic networks and substance use. Int J Adolesc Youth. 2016; 21(4):513-522.. View in PubMed
• A Systematic Review of Loneliness and Smoking: Small Effects, Big Implications. Subst Use Misuse. 2015; 50(13):1697-716.. View in PubMed
• Bridging, brokerage and betweenness. Soc Networks. 2016 Jan; 44:202-208.. View in PubMed
• Diffusion of innovations theory applied to global tobacco control treaty ratification. Soc Sci Med. 2015 Nov; 145:89-97.. View in PubMed
• Electronic Cigarette Marketing Online: a Multi-Site, Multi-Product Comparison. JMIR Public Health Surveill. 2015 Jul-Dec; 1(2):e11.. View in PubMed
• Increases in Network Ties Are Associated With Increased Cohesion Among Intervention Participants. Health Educ Behav. 2016 Apr; 43(2):208-16.. View in PubMed
• Coevolution of Information Sharing and Implementation of Evidence-Based Practices Among North American Tobacco Cessation Quitlines. Am J Public Health. 2015 Sep; 105(9):1814-22.. View in PubMed
• Social network analysis for program implementation. PLoS One. 2015; 10(6):e0131712.. View in PubMed
• Place of Residence Moderates the Relationship Between Emotional Closeness and Syringe Sharing Among Injection Drug Using Clients of Sex Workers in the US-Mexico Border Region. AIDS Behav. 2015 Jun; 19(6):987-95.. View in PubMed
• How different countries addressed the sudden growth of e-cigarettes in an online tobacco control community. BMJ Open. 2015 May 21; 5(5):e007654.. View in PubMed
• Methods for measuring diffusion of a social media-based health intervention. Soc Netw. 2015 Apr; 4(2):41-46.. View in PubMed
• A Social Network Analysis of a Coalition Initiative to Prevent Underage Drinking in Los Angeles County. Proc Annu Hawaii Int Conf Syst Sci. 2015 Jan; 2015:4356-4365.. View in PubMed
• The protective role of school friendship ties for substance use and aggressive behaviors among middle school students. J Sch Health. 2015 Feb; 85(2):82-9.. View in PubMed
• “Hidden” social networks in behavior change interventions. Am J Public Health. 2015 Mar; 105(3):513-6.. View in PubMed
• Peer leaders and substance use among high-risk adolescents. Subst Use Misuse. 2015 Feb; 50(3):283-91.. View in PubMed
• Transforming mental health services: a participatory mixed methods study to promote and evaluate the implementation of recovery-oriented services. Implement Sci. 2014 Sep 10; 9:119.. View in PubMed
• Commentary–Project Towards No Drug Abuse: an evidence-based drug abuse prevention program. J Prim Prev. 2014 Aug; 35(4):233-7.. View in PubMed
• The interplay of friendship networks and social networking sites: longitudinal analysis of selection and influence effects on adolescent smoking and alcohol use. Am J Public Health. 2014 Aug; 104(8):e51-9.. View in PubMed
• Women’s social communication about IUDs: a qualitative analysis. Perspect Sex Reprod Health. 2014 Sep; 46(3):141-8.. View in PubMed

• Unger, Jennifer
• Leventhal, Adam
• Sussman, Steven
• Barrington-Trimis, Jessica