Dr. SterlingRobert C. Sterling, PhD
Associate Director, Division of Substance Abuse Programs
Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Human Behavior

Contact Dr. Sterling

1021 S. 21st Street Philadelphia, PA 19146

(215) 790-9942
(215) 790-9947 (fax)


Graduate School

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY

University Appointment
Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Human Behavior

Hospital Appointment
Associate Director, Division of Substance Abuse Programs

Research and Clinical Interests
Prior areas of scientific inquiry have included an examination of the role of active cue exposure in the treatment of cocaine addiction. Using a cue exposure paradigm, cocaine dependent persons with a history of frequent relapse were presented with a graded series of cocaine relevant stimuli in a randomized controlled study design. The major goal of the project was to test the hypothesis that providing biofeedback during the cue exposure sessions would a) help individuals develop control/mastery over stimuli which, in the past, triggered renewed cocaine use, and b) promote feelings of abstinence efficacy (NIDA R29 DA09415 8/15/95 - 5/31/01).

We have also undertaken scientific study of the role of religiosity and spirituality in the recovery from alcohol and other substance use disorders. The primary aim of this work was to examine whether admission differences in levels of spirituality predisposed patients to favorable or unfavorable outcomes following admission for alcohol treatment at facilities where spirituality was or was not a prominently featured aspect of treatment. The major goal of this project was a test of the hypothesis that persons whose level of spirituality was congruent with the spiritual orientation of the facility, and who as such were considered optimally placed (i.e., "matched") for treatment, evinced more positive outcomes (NIAAA R21 AA1306 7/1/02 - 3/31/06).

Most recently, we have begun to examine the empirical assessment of recovery capital as well as the behavioral health needs of the elderly.

General areas of interest include general program evaluation/outcomes research, learned helplessness and its clinical sequelae, substance abuse recovery and continued study of methods by which patient placement procedures can be manipulated to promote optimal treatment outcomes.

Publications

  1. Is exposure to an effective contingency management intervention associated with more positive provider beliefs?
  2. Using buprenorphine to treat opioid-dependent university students opportunities, successes, and challenges
  3. Contribution of limbic norepinephrine to cannabinoid-induced aversion
  4. Erratum: The influence of intake urinalysis, psychopathology measures, and menstrual cycle phase on treatment outcome (The American Journal on Addictions 18: 2 (169))
  5. Cocaine withdrawal-induced anxiety in females: Impact of circulating estrogen and potential use of delta-opioid receptor agonists for treatment
  6. The influence of intake urinalysis, psychopathology measures, and menstrual cycle phase on treatment compliance
  7. Cannabinoids and novelty investigation: Influence of age and duration of exposure
  8. Measuring recovery capital and determining its relationship to outcome in an alcohol dependent sample
  9. Low dose naltrexone administration in morphine dependent rats attenuates withdrawal-induced norepinephrine efflux in forebrain
  10. Effectiveness of Abstinence-Based Incentives: Interaction With Intake Stimulant Test Results
  11. A retrospective case control study of alcohol relapse and spiritual growth
  12. Inpatient desire to drink as a predictor of relapse to alcohol use following treatment
  13. Levels of spirituality and treatment outcome: A preliminary examination
  14. Effect of prize-based incentives on outcomes in stimulant abusers in outpatient psychosocial treatment programs: A national drug abuse treatment clinical trials network study
  15. Gender differences in cue exposure reactivity and 9-month outcome
  16. Relationship between tobacco smoking and medical symptoms among cocaine-, alcohol-, and opiate-dependent patients
  17. Researching the treatment of drinking problems: A call for external as well as internal validity
  18. Serum prolactin and response to treatment among cocaine-dependent individuals
  19. Serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene polymorphisms and susceptibility to cocaine dependence among African-American individuals
  20. The effect of therapist/patient race- and sex-matching in individual treatment

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