Nicotine, Tobacco, and Vaping (NTV) Research Group

We conduct excellent, inclusive, distinctive and impactful research on nicotine, tobacco, and vaping that informs policy, addresses inequalities, and reduces harm from smoked tobacco.

• Our research addresses local, national, and global challenges which benefits communities and improves health and wellbeing.
• We lead on scientific investigation from laboratory experimentation and experiential work to large scale national surveys, trials, and evaluations, ensuring our research extends from the controlled environment to real-world impact.

Supported by funding from Cancer Research UK, the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR), the Medical Research Council (MRC), and the British Association of Psychopharmacology (BAP), our research group is dedicated to advancing psychological understanding of nicotine use and dependence and facilitating sustainable smoking cessation strategies.  As tobacco smoking remains a significant contributor to preventable mortality, particularly among the most disadvantaged in society, our mission is to alleviate this burden of health inequality.

Collaborating closely with individuals who smoke and the healthcare professionals who support them, we leverage evidence-based methodologies to empower smoking cessation efforts.  Embracing a harm reduction ethos, we explore reduced risk nicotine products such as vapes (e-cigarettes), seeking to optimize their efficacy for smoking cessation while actively assessing their appeal and use among young people.

Our research on nicotine explores effects on information processing, reward interactions, behavioural change, social cognition, and identity. Our work on vaping behaviour, and interactions with product type, nicotine e-liquid concentrations, and pack messaging has directly fed into local and national policy and service delivery improvements.

With a wealth of expertise including experimental design, pharmacokinetics, eye-tracking, survey development, evaluation design, qualitative methodologies, and Randomized Controlled Trials, we are at the forefront of innovative approaches to understand nicotine addiction, reduce tobacco smoking, and promote public health.