Mission Statement

To advance understanding, prevention, and treatment of addiction through innovative research, interdisciplinary collaboration, community engagement, and legal and policy development.

Vision

To be a global leader in addiction research, developing and promoting transformative discoveries that inform evidence-based interventions, practices, and legal and regulatory policies that mitigate the harmful public health impacts of addiction.

Goal

To respond to the public health challenges of addiction by promoting collaborative research among USC students and faculty, while engaging with stakeholders who range from affected populations and clinicians to policy makers.

What do we do?

• The addictive substances we study include alcohol, tobacco/nicotine, marijuana, opioids, stimulants, and prescription drugs.
• We study addiction and its prevention across diverse populations that range in age, region of the world, and disadvantaged circumstances.
• Our research and its implications cover a variety of settings and systems, from community-based organizations and healthcare settings to media and federal-level regulatory policy.
• We use qualitative methods, surveys, and experimental and quasi-experimental approaches to identify and evaluate intervention strategies.