Kasisomayajula Viswanath

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Biography

Dr. K. “Vish” Viswanath is Lee Kum Kee Professor of Health Communication in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health (HSPH) and in the McGraw-Patterson Center for Population Sciences at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). He is Director of the Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness (HSPH), Director of the India Research Center (HSPH), Leader of Viswanath Lab (DFCI), Faculty Director of the Health Communication Core of the Harvard Cancer Consortium (HCC); founding Director of the Enhancing Communications for Health Outcomes (ECHO) Laboratory (HCC); and Associate Director of Community Outreach and Engagement (HCC).

Dr. Viswanath’s work is driven by two fundamental concerns: (a) how to center equity in drawing on translational communication science to promote health and well-being for ALL population groups, and (b) to involve community-based organizations and stakeholders through participatory research in promoting social change. The ultimate goal of the program of research in his lab is to influence public health policy and practice through knowledge translation and translational communication. His work draws from literature in communication science, social epidemiology, dissemination and implementation, and social and health behavior sciences.

His work so far has documented the relationship between communication inequalities, poverty and health disparities, and knowledge translation to address health disparities. He has written more than 340 journal articles and book chapters concerning communication inequalities and health disparities, knowledge translation, public health communication campaigns, e-health and digital divide, public health emergency preparedness and the delivery of health communication interventions to underserved populations. He is the Co-Editor of seven books and monographs: Health behavior: Theory, research, and practice (6th ed.) (2024), Understanding and addressing misinformation about science (2024), The first 1,000 days of life: Lessons from social and behavior change communication (2021), A socioecological approach to addressing tobacco-related health disparities (2017), The role of media in promoting and reducing tobacco use (2008), The international encyclopedia of communication (2008), and Mass media, social control, and social change: A macrosocial perspective (1999).

He has served and continues to serve on several national committees including for the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM). He chaired NASEM’s Consensus Study Committee on Understanding and Addressing Misinformation About Science.

In recognition of his academic and professional achievements, Dr. Viswanath has received several awards and honors.

For more information about Dr. Viswanath’s research, visit https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/viswanathlab/

Awards and Honors

• Fellow, 2024
  American Association for Advancement of Science
• College of Liberal Arts Alumnus of Notable Achievement, 2018
  University of Minnesota
• Postdoctoral Mentor of the Year, 2017
  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• Joseph W. Cullen Memorial Award, 2014
  American Society of Preventive Oncology
• Dale Brashers Distinguished Mentoring Award, 2013
  National Communication Association
• Fellow, 2011
  International Communication Association
• Outstanding Health Communication Scholar Award, 2010
  International Communication Association and the National Communication Association
• Mayhew Derryberry Award, 2009
  American Public Health Association
• Fellow, 2008
  Society for Behavioral Medicine
• Fellow, 2006
  Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research

Publications

• Does gender expression matter in tailoring anti-smoking messages for sexual and gender minority young adults?

  Ye Q, Wu J, Hanby E, Scout NFN, Gordon B, Applegate J, Machado A, Liu S, Obedin-Maliver J, Lunn MR, Potter J, Chen JT, Ramanadhan S, Viswanath K, Tan ASL. Nicotine Tob Res 2026 Jun 23

  PMID: 41685765

• Does Misinformation Have Spillover Effects on Unrelated Health Behaviors? Promising Null Results from a Longitudinal Study of U.S. Adults.

  Kikut-Stein A, Jesch E, Dhawan D, McCloud R, Viswanath K. J Health Commun 2026

  PMID: 41729578

• Organizational Theory for Hospital Interventions.

  Ngo T, Baird J, Mauskar S, Haskell HW, Habibi AN, Landrigan CP, Copp KL, Hennessy K, Luff D, Mallick N, Matherson S, McGeachey AG, Pinkham AL, Quiñones-Pérez B, Rogers J, Schuster MA, Singer SJ, Toomey SL, Viswanath K, Wilder JL, Khan A. Pediatrics 2026 Jan 01

  PMID: 41344378

• Reading Grade Level Estimates of Public Health Communication on Social Media Vary Due to Text Preprocessing.

  Mendez SR, Galvez SM, Emmons KM, Viswanath K. J Health Commun 2026

  PMID: 41204693

• The missing link in the NCD agenda: girls and young women remain overlooked.

  Sana H, Hauerslev M, Zarak MS, Viswanath K. Lancet 2025 May 31

  PMID: 40409335