Lara N Coughlin, PhD
Associate Professor
Office:
Department of Psychiatry
2800 Plymouth Road, Building 16, Floor 2
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
2800 Plymouth Road, Building 16, Floor 2
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Email:
[email protected]
Phone:
Available to mentor
Lara N Coughlin, PhD
Associate Professor
Manage Your Profile
About
Lara Coughlin, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist and an Associate Professor at the University of Michigan Addiction Center in the Department of Psychiatry. She is the co-director of the Michigan Innovations in Addiction Care through Research and Education (MI-ACRE) program and Mental Health Equity Lead in the Eisenberg Family Depression Center. Her research focuses on identifying populations experiencing substance-related health inequities and developing and adapting interventions to improve outcomes for those with at-risk substance use or substance use disorders. She is particularly interested in interventions rooted in behavioral economic frameworks, including incentive-based interventions (i.e., contingency management), interventions to increase engagement in substance-free activities, and combinations of human- and digital-delivery of interventions to enhance reach, reduce barriers, and maximize impact.
Links
https://coughlin.lab.medicine.umich.edu/
Qualifications
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Postdoctoral FellowUniversity of Michigan–Ann Arbor, Department of Psychiatry, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
2018 - 2020
Postdoctoral Fellowship
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APA-Accredited Predoctoral Internship in Clinical PsychologyDurham VA Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
2017 - 2018
Predoctoral Fellowship
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PhDVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, United States
2015 - 2018
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MSVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, United States
2012 - 2014
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BSDavidson College, Davidson, North Carolina, United States
2005 - 2009
Center Memberships
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Center MemberRogel Cancer Center
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Center MemberUniversity of Michigan Addiction Center
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Center MemberEisenberg Family Depression Center
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Center MemberUniversity of Michigan Injury Prevention Center
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Center MemberOpioid Research Institute
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Center MemberInstitute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation
Research Overview
Behavioral economics; polysubstance use; smoking cessation; rural health; telehealth; mhealth; harm reduction; social determinants of health; adaptive interventions; community engagement; health services
Recent Publications
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Trella A, Ghosh S, Bonar EE, Coughlin L, Doshi-Velez F, Guo Y, Hung P-Y, Nahum-Shani I, Shetty V, Walton M, Yan I, Zhang K, Murphy SA. npj Digital Medicine, 2026 Apr 13;Journal ArticleEffective Monitoring of Online AI Decision-Making Algorithms in Just-In-Time Adaptive Interventions
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Benson L, Sudijono TP, Flora A, Binford M, Ortega O, Potter L, Coughlin L, Newman M. 2026 Oct 24;Proceeding / Abstract / PosterCo-design of personalized feedback data visualizations for digital smoking cessation interventions
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Coughlin LN, McDonnell M, Freese T, Parent S, Erath T. 2026 Sep 30;PresentationExpanding Contingency Management into Routine Care: A First Look at Statewide Rollouts from across the United States
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Coughlin LN. 2026 Sep 8;PresentationContingency Management for Stimulant Use Disorder: New Evidence for Reducing Mortality
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Tomlinson DC, Bonar EE, Walton MA, Lin LA, Nahum-Shani I, Jannausch M, Coughlin L. Journal of The Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 2026 Aug 24;Journal ArticleDaily Assessments of Behavioral Economic Indices and Drinking Among Rural Residing Adults with At-Risk Drinking
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Coughlin LN. 2026 Sep 8;PresentationBringing behavioral economics to addiction care
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Coughlin LN, Fernandez A, Livingston C. 2026 Sep 30;PresentationContingency Management in Michigan Medicaid: Lessons from the Recovery Incentives Pilot and Emerging Digital Models
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Walton M, Nahum-Shani I, Campbell M, Tomlinson DC, Florimbio AR, Ghosh S, Guo Y, Hung PY, Newman MW, Lin JJ, Qian T, Dziak J, Pan H, Zhang KW, Zimmermann L, Bonar EE, Murphy S, Coughlin LN. Lancet Regional Health Americas, 2026 Sep 1; 61:Journal ArticleCorrigendum to “Mobile intervention for emerging adults with regular cannabis use: a micro-randomized trial” [The Lancet Regional Health—Americas 2026; Volume 61: 101524; DOI: 10.1016/j.lana.2026.101524]
DOI:10.1016/j.lana.2026.101594
Featured News & Stories
Department News
Policy Impact Snapshot: Improving Substance Use Disorder Treatment Through Incentive-Based Care
Dr. Lara Coughlin’s research on substance use disorders and addiction care informs policy and practice at the local, state, and national levels.
Department News
Incentivizing Recovery: Why Contingency Management Works to Treat Addiction
Dr. Lara Coughlin was interviewed in the American Psychological Association's Speaking of Psychology podcast. Coughlin discussed contingency management as treatment for addiction and substance use disorders.
Department News
Guest Editorial — Contingency Management Saves Lives: From Evidence to Action
Lara Coughlin, PhD, and Allison Lin, MD, DFASAM, published this editorial in The American Society of Addiction Medicine
Health Lab
Small rewards lead to big wins for saving veterans' lives
Contingency management, which offers people small rewards for progress in recovering from drug addiction, was linked to fewer deaths in veterans with methamphetamine, cocaine or prescription drug issues.
Department News
The MI-ACRE Program - Part 3 of 3
MI-ACRE at U-M advances addiction care via research, training, and clinical innovation—including a major study on menthol cigarette cessation.
Department News
The MI-ACRE Program - Part 2 of 3
MI-ACRE uses tech-driven, patient-first research to expand access to addiction care and integrate it with broader mental health services.
