Rob Cramer

Profile 

Dr. Robert J. Cramer, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor and Irwin Belk Distinguished Scholar in Health Research in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. His research expertise spans suicide prevention, hate crimes/violence prevention, sexual and gender minority health, military health, quantitative methods, social science, law & policy, community-engaged research, and individual (e.g., personality) and interpersonal (e.g., social-cognitive) theories. Dr. Cramer’s research has been funded by SAMHSA, U.S. Navy Clinical Investigations Program, Department of Veterans Affairs, National Science Foundation, and a variety of private sources. He also has engaged in considerable interdisciplinary research with collaborators in nursing, athletic training, law, and variety of other disciplines.

Dr. Cramer enjoys working with students across training levels! He welcomes interested inquiries from potential research student mentees. His teaching spans methods, theories, multicultural matters, mental health, and general service courses. Grounded in the Jesuit ideal of Cura Personalis (educating or caring for the whole person), he values mentoring graduate and undergraduate student research and career development. Mentees have gone on to pursue doctoral degrees in many disciplines (e.g., psychology, health services research), and assumed careers in private practice, healthcare, academia, non-profit and other industry research. Check out what some of Dr. Cramer’s current and former mentees are up to:

Andréa Kaniuka, MA

Emily Gabriel, Ph.D.

Tess Gemberling, Ph.D.

Jennifer Johnson, Ph.D.

Molly Long, Ph.D.

Hayley Wechsler, Ph.D.

Dr. Cramer devotes his community, professional and university service to three core areas: scholarly dissemination, student development, and mental health. For instance, he currently serves as co-editor of the Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, with additional editorial board roles with the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, BMC Psychiatry (suicide prevention division), and Aggressive Behavior. Student-focused service includes, but is not limited to, thesis and dissertation committees, prior supervision of Psi Chi (psychology undergraduate honors society), and previous management of Ph.D. student applications to APA-accredited internships.  Dr. Cramer is also an active CE trainer, having delivered variations of his Core Competency Suicide Prevention Training program to more than 1000 trainees over his career.

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Education

• BA. – Loyola University Maryland, 2004, Psychology
• MA. – University of Alabama (Roll Tide!), 2006, Psychology
• Ph.D. – University of Alabama (Roll Tide!), 2010, Psychology
• Pre-Doctoral Internship & Research Fellow – University of California San Francisco, 2009-2010

Teaching

• Introduction to the U.S. Health Care System
• Seminar in Health Services Research
• Special Topics Interprofessional Approaches to Suicide Prevention

Research Interests

• Suicide prevention: Vulnerable population (e.g., military, young adults) theory testing, prevention and intervention design (e.g., health professions training)
• Hate crimes and violence prevention
• Sexual and gender minority (SGM) identity and health
• Mental health
• Social and behavioral science theories applied to law and mental health
  
• Scale development

Awards & Honors

• University of Strathclyde Honorary Research Fellow: 2017
• University of Central Lancashire Honorary Research Fellow: 2016
• Alpha Chi Outstanding Faculty Award (Honors College Outstanding Teacher): 2014

Selected Publications (from more than 135; † = invited piece; ‡ = student co-author)

Pirelli, G., Wechsler, H., & Cramer, R.J. (2019). The Behavioral Science of Firearms: A Mental Health Perspective on Guns, Suicide, and Violence. Oxford University Press: New York, NY.

Cramer, R.J., Franks, M., Cunningham, C.A., & Bryan, C.J. (In Press). Preferences in Information Processing: Understanding Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors among Active Duty Military Service Members. Archives of Suicide Research.

Cramer, R.J., Fording, R.C., Gerstenfeld, P.B., Kehn, A., Marsden, J., Deitle, C., King, A., Smart, S., & Nobles, M.R. (In Press). Hate-Motivated Behavior: Impacts, Risk Factors, and A Call For Solutions. Health Affairs [† invited policy brief as part of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation series]

Cramer, R.J., Ireland, J.L., ‡Long, M.M., Hartley, V., & Lamis, D.A. (In Press). Initial Validation of the Suicide Competency Assessment Form among Behavioral Health Staff in the National Health Services (NHS) Trust. Archives of Suicide Research.

Cramer, R.J., Wright, S., ‡Wilsey, C.N, ‡Kaniuka, A.R., Bowling, J., Crocker, T., Langhinrichsen-Rohling, J.,   Montanaro, E., Mennicke, A., & Heron, K.E. (In Press). Alternative Sexuality, Sexual Orientation, and      Mobile Technology: Findings from the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom Technology and Health Enhancement Feasibility Study. Psychology & Sexuality.

‡Kaniuka, A.R., ‡Oakey-Frost, N., ‡Moscardini, E., Tucker, R.P., Rasmussen, S., & Cramer, R.J. (In Press). Grit, humor style, and suicidal behavior: Results from a comparative study of adults in the U.S. and U.K.  Personality and Individual Differences.

Cramer, R.J., Ireland, J.L., Hartley, V., ‡Long, M.M., Ireland, C.A., & Wilkinson, T. (2020). Coping, Mental Health, and Subjective Well-being among Mental Health Staff working in Secure Forensic Psychiatric Settings: Results from a Workplace Health Assessment. Psychological Services, 17(2), 160–169.

Lange, T., Hilgeman, M.M., Portz, K.J., Intoccia, V.A., & Cramer, R.J. (2020). Pride in All Who Served: Implementation, Feasibility, and Initial Efficacy of a Pilot Health Education Program for LGBT Veterans. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 21(4), 484-504. [Special Issue on Trauma, Advocacy, and Social Movements}

Cramer, R.J., Rasmussen, S., ‡Webber. W.B., ‡Sime, V.L., ‡Haile, C., ‡McFadden, C., & McManus, M.C. (2019). Preferences in Information Processing and Suicide: Results from a Young Adult Health Survey in the United Kingdom. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 65, 46-55.  

‡Cabeldue, M., Cramer, R.J., Kehn, A., Crosby, J., & Anastasi, J. (2018). Measuring attitudes about hate: Development of the hate crime beliefs scale. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 33, 3656-3685.

Cramer, R.J., Golom, F.D., Gemberling, T.M., ‡Trost, K., Lewis, R.J., & Wright, S. (2018). Examining the Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Identity Scale among members of an alternative sexual special interest group. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47, 1251-1264.