Cassandra Boness :: Center on Alcohol, Substance use, And Addictions (CASAA)

Cassandra Boness, Ph.D

Research Assistant Professor
cboness@unm.edu
(505) 226-2854

Google Scholar Page
Professional Website
Boness Addictions Lab

Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, University of Missouri

Areas of Expertise

Addiction etiologic and maintenance mechanisms
Measurement and assessment
Psychometrics
Mixed methods
Empirically supported treatments
Motivational interviewing

Primary Research Area

I am a clinical psychologist who specializes in addiction science. My mixed-methods research, guided by the primary goal of reducing harm and suffering and improving wellbeing for people with substance use disorders, focuses on the etiology, assessment, and treatment of alcohol use disorder. I am particularly interested in developing and refining assessments of alcohol use disorder mechanisms with the goal of facilitating mechanism-based precision medicine. Clinically, I specialize in motivational interviewing and have a strong background working with Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities. I am passionate about improving diversity, equity, and inclusion in psychological science.

Download Dr. Boness' full vita.

Development and Multimethod Validation of a Computerized Adaptive Test of Alcohol Use Disorder Etiologic Mechanisms (NIAAA; K08AA030301): https://reporter.nih.gov/search/ScX3HXlMw0uKjwXpOrnApQ/project-details/10504509
Refining the Measurement and Assessment of Stigma and Discrimination among People with Chronic Pain who Use Opioids (University of New Mexico Integrative Management of chronic Pain and Opioid use disorder for Whole Recovery [IMPOWR] Center Pilot Research Project)

Initial Development and Validation of a Translational Approach to AUD Definition and Measurement (NIAAA; F31AA026177)

Daniel Vega

Awards and Activities

2022 - Outstanding Dissertation Award | American Psychological Association, Division 28
2021 - University Missouri Distinguished Dissertation Award | University of Missouri Graduate School
2021 - Distinguished Dissertation Award in Clinical Psychology | American Psychological Association, Division 12

Editorial Boards

(2023 - Present) Section Editor (Alcohol), Current Addiction Reports
(2023 - Present) Consulting Editor, Training and Education in Professional Psychology
(2022 - Present) Principal Reviewer, Psychology of Addictive Behaviors
(2021 - Present) Consulting Editor, Professional Psychology: Research and Practice

Boness, C.L., Votaw, V.R., Schwebel, F.J., Moniz-Lewis, D.I.K., McHugh, R.K., & Witkiewitz, K. (2023). An evaluation of cognitive behavioral therapy for substance use disorder: A systematic review and application of Tolin’s Criteria for empirically supported treatments. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice. [ preprint]
Boness, C.L., Votaw, V.R., Francis, M., Watts, A.L., Kleva, C.S., Sperry, S.H., Douaihy, A.B., Sher, K.J., & Witkiewitz, K. (2022). Alcohol use disorder conceptualizations and diagnoses reflect their sociopolitical context. Addiction Research and Theory. [ preprint]
Boness, C.L. & Witkiewitz, K. (2022). Precision medicine in alcohol use disorder: Mapping etiologic and maintenance mechanisms to mechanisms of behavior change to improve patient outcomes. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. [ preprint]
Boness, C.L., Watts, A.L., Moeller, K., & Sher, K.J. (2021). The Etiologic, Theory-Based, Ontogenetic Hierarchical Framework of Alcohol Use Disorder: A translational systematic review of reviews. Psychological Bulletin. [ preprint]
Boness, C.L., Lane, S.P., & Sher, K.J. (2019). Not all alcohol use disorder criteria are equally severe: Towards severity grading of individual criteria. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 33(1), 35-49. PMCID: PMC6494471 [ PDF]
Boness, C.L., Stevens, J.E., Steinley, J., Trull, T., & Sher, K.J. (2020). Using complete enumeration to derive "one-size-fits-all" versus "subgroup-specific" diagnostic rules for substance use disorder. Assessment. [ PDF]
Boness, C.L., Stevens, J.E., Steinley, D., Trull, T., & Sher, K.J. (2018). Deriving alternative criteria sets for alcohol use disorders using statistical optimization: Results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 27(3), 283-296. PMCID: PMC6538450 [ PDF]
Boness, C.L., & Sher, K.J. (2020). The case for cognitive interviewing in survey item validation: A useful approach for improving the measurement and assessment of substance use disorders. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 81(4), 401-404. [ PDF]
Boness, C.L., Lane, S.P., & Sher, K.J. (2016). Assessment of withdrawal and hangover are confounded in the Alcohol Use Disorder and Associated Disabilities Interview Schedule: Withdrawal prevalence is likely inflated. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 40, 1691-1699. PMCID: PMC4961561 [ PDF]
Boness, C. L. (2015). Treatment of Deaf clients: Ethical considerations for professionals in psychology. Ethics & Behavior, 26, 562-585. PMCID: PMC5127625 [ PDF]
Boness, C.L., Hershenberg, R., Kaye, J., Mackintosh, M., Grasso, D., Noser, A., & Raffa, S.D. (2020). An evaluation of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia: Application of Tolin's criteria for empirically supported treatments. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice. [ PDF]
Watts, A.L., Boness, C.L., Loeffelman, J.E., Steinley, D., & Sher, K.J. (2021). Does crude measurement contribute to observed unidimensionality of psychological constructs? An example with DSM-5 alcohol use disorder. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. [ preprint]
Galán, C.A, Bekele, B.M., Boness, C.L., & Yilmaz, B. (2021). A call to action for an antiracist clinical science. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology. [ preprint]

Center on Alcohol, Substance use, And Addictions (CASAA)

Cassandra Boness, Ph.D

Areas of Expertise

Primary Research Area

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