Molly Waring, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Allied Health Sciences
Research Overview
Dr. Waring’s research focuses on health promotion among perinatal persons and mothers, particularly on how social media can be used for health promotion. Dr. Waring has led multiple grant-funded projects in the areas of post-partum weight loss, gestational weight gain, perinatal/maternal mental health, and health misinformation on social media funded. Dr. Waring’s research program also includes public health surveillance studies using data from nationally-representative public health surveys (e.g., the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey [NHANES], National Health Information Trends Survey [HINTS]) and social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X) to improve our understanding of the national and international landscape of health behavior and healthcare utilization, particularly related to women’s health and weight management. In addition to leading digital health research studies as PI, Dr. Waring is a collaborative methodologist, serving the role of statistical scientist on projects utilizing social media for participant recruitment, intervention delivery, or public health surveillance. She is the founding Chair of the InCHIP Pregnancy & Post-Partum Health Research Interest Group.
Education
2003, Harvey Mudd College, BS, Psychology/Biology
2007, Brown University, AM, Epidemiology
2009, Brown University, PhD, Epidemiology
