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Alison J. Culyba, MD, PhD, MPH

  • Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Public Health, and Clinical and Translational Science

Alison Culyba was awarded an NIH/NICHD career development award (K23 HD098277). Her research examines the role of social networks and environmental contexts in protecting youth from violence and translates findings into community-based interventions.

Culyba’s current work models social networks to study associations between adolescent-adult connections and multiple forms of violence victimization and perpetration in a diverse, community-based sample of Pittsburgh youth. Through an implementation science framework, she seeks to translate these findings into a community- based violence prevention intervention that leverages connections and safeguards youth. Culyba also investigates novel methods to study how physical and social environments shape violence risk.

As Director of the Empowering Teens to Thrive hospital-based violence intervention program for assault- injured youth at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Culyba provides medical follow-up and linkage to support services to promote recovery following violent injury.

Professional and Scientific Society Memberships

  • American Academy of Pediatrics, 2007-Present
    • Fellow, 2018
  • Society of Adolescent Health and Medicine, 2012-Present
  • Society of Pediatric Research, Trainee Member, 2013-2017
  • Society for Advancement of Violence and Injury Research, 2014-Present
  • Academic Pediatrics Association, 2014-Present
  • International Network for Social Network Analysis, 2020-Present

Education & Training

  • BA, English Literature with Honors, Brown University, 2001
  • MPH, Family and Community Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 2006
  • MD, University of Pennsylvania, 2007
  • Residency in Internal Medicine-Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 2007-2011
  • Fellowship in Adolescent Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 2012-2015
  • Advanced Research Fellowship in Adolescent Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 2015-2017
  • PhD, Clinical Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania, 2016

Selected Publications

Myers RK, Vega L, Culyba AJ, Fein JA. The Psychosocial Needs of Adolescent Males Following Interpersonal Assault. Journal of Adolescent Health. 61(2):262-265. August 2017.

Culyba AJ, Guo W, Branas CC, Miller E, Wiebe DJ. Comparing residence-based versus actual path-based methods for defining adolescents’ environmental exposures using granular spatial data. Health and Place. 49: 39-49. November 2017. doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2017.11.007

Abebe KZ, Jones KA, Culyba AJ, Feliz NB, Anderson H, Torres I, Zelazny S, Bamwine P, Boateng A,  Cirba B,  Detchon A, Devine D, Feinstein Z, Macak J, Massof M, Miller-Walfish S, Morrow SE,  Mulbah P, Mulwa Z, Paglisotti T, Ripper L, Ports KA, Matjasko JL, Garg A,  Kato-Wallace J,  Pulerwitz J, Miller E. Engendering healthy masculinities to prevent sexual violence: Rationale for and design of the Manhood 2.0 trial. Contemporary Clinical Trials. 71: 18-32. May 2018.

Culyba AJ, Miller E, Ginsburg KR, Branas CC, Guo W, Fein JA, Richmond TS, Halpern-Felsher B, Wiebe DJ. Adult Connection in Assault Injury Prevention Among Male Youth in Urban Low-Resource Neighborhoods. Journal of Urban Health. 95(3): 361-371. June 2018. doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0260-8

Culyba AJ, Abebe KZ, Albert SM, Jones KA, Paglisotti BA, Zimmerman MA, Miller E. Association of future orientation with violence perpetration among male youths in low resource neighborhoods. JAMA Pediatrics. 172(9), Sep: 2018.

Culyba AJ, Branas CC, Guo W, Miller E, Ginsburg KR, Wiebe DJ. Route choices and adolescent-adult connections in mitigating exposure to environmental risk factors during daily activities. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Available online in advance of print May 5, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519846859

Bushover B, Miller E, Bair-Merritt M, Abebe K, Culyba AJ. Physical environments and violence involvement in male youth in Pittsburgh: A spatial analysis. Injury Prevention. 2019. Available online in advance of print July 12, 2019. doi:10.1136/injuryprev-2019-043356

Culyba AJ, Miller E, Albert SM, Abebe KZ. Co-occurrence of violence-related risk and protective behaviors and adult support among male youth in urban neighborhoods. JAMA Network Open. 2019;2(9):e1911375. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.11375

Miller E, Culyba AJ, Paglisotti T, Massof M, Gao Q, Ports KA, Kato-Wallace J, Pulerwitz J, Espelage DL, Abebe KZ, Jones KA.  Male Adolescents’ Gender Attitudes and Violence: Implications for Youth Violence Prevention.  American Journal of Preventive Medicine 2019.  Published online Dec. 27, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2019.10.009

Bamwine PM, Jones K, Chugani C, Miller E, Culyba AJ. Homicide survivorship and suicidality amongst adolescents. Traumatology. Advance online publication. Dec 12, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1037/trm0000230

Ragavan MI, Culyba AJ, Shaw D, Miller E. Social support, exposure to parental intimate partner violence, and relationship abuse among marginalized youth. Journal of Adolescent Health. Available online in advance of print March 9, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.01.020

Research Interest Summary

Youth Violence Prevention

Academic and Research Interests

  • Adolescent health
  • Youth violence
  • Firearm injury prevention
  • Epidemiology
  • Social network analysis
  • Spatial analysis
  • Public health intervention research

Research Grants

"Strengthening Adolescent-Adult Networks to Reduce Youth Violence" (NIH/NICID K23 HD098277-01). A. Culyba, PI, 85% effort, Direct costs: $145,863 (7/1/2019-6/31/2024).

"Leveraging Adult Support Networks to Protect Male Youth" (Children’s Research Advisory Committee Award, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh). A. Culyba, PI, Direct costs: $40,000 (1/1/2019-12/31/2020).

"Get Safe: Youth Social Networks and Activity Spaces" (CTSI’s Research Initiative for Special Populations, University of Pittsburgh CTSI/NCATS). A. Culyba, co-PI, Direct costs: $25,000 (2/15/2020-2/14/2021).