The overlooked addiction: Researcher targets tobacco use in substance use care

For Elizabeth "Liz" Jurczak Goldsborough, tobacco use is a social justice issue. "Although tobacco use has declined dramatically in the United States, the progress has not been shared equally across all populations," says Goldsborough, a UConn School of Social Work doctoral candidate. "People with other substance use disorders smoke at much higher rates, as do people with other mental health conditions and members of other groups that social workers serve."

Goldsborough, who is also a predoctoral fellow in the Behavioral Sciences Training in Drug Abuse Research (BST) program at New York University, focuses her research on the concurrent treatment of tobacco use and other substance use.

For example, although Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous achieved sobriety, he continued to smoke heavily and died from the chronic lung disease emphysema.

"So many times, tobacco treatment doesn't get addressed, even though smoking takes so many years of life from individuals with substance use disorders," she says. "Treating tobacco use alongside other substance use is a more holistic approach to care and can improve both quality of life and longevity."

Goldsborough's dissertation, tentatively titled "Tobacco Treatment Practices in Substance Use Care Settings: Provider and Organizational Factors"—examines how treatment settings address tobacco use, an often-overlooked component of substance use care.

That focus also extends into her recent paper, "Examining the bidirectional relationship between food insecurity and cigarette smoking: Evidence from a cross-lagged panel analysis," published in the American Journal of Health Promotion.

A first-generation college student and a 1.5-generation immigrant, Goldsborough grew up in Poland and New York City. After earning her MSW from Rutgers University and becoming a licensed social worker in New York and New Jersey, she worked as a medical social worker in hospital settings and later as a clinical research counselor—where she discovered her passion for research.

"In my medical social work roles, I worked with clients one-to-one, but research allows me to make change at a different scale," she says. "It's a way to have an impact beyond the individuals I see directly and to bring a social work perspective to research that affects the populations we serve."

At UConn, Goldsborough has been supported by a strong network of mentors who have helped shape both her research and professional development. She credits her major advisor, Professor Emeritus Michael Fendrich, who is closely involved in her work even after retiring, as well as Assistant Professor Jon Phillips, her associate advisor and longtime graduate assistant (GRA) supervisor.

"Elizabeth is one of the top students that I have ever advised in my long career," Fendrich says. "She is an outstanding collaborator and team player, who, above all, values social justice and who understands the importance of team science to address critical health disparities. I will miss working with her when she graduates—we have a unique bond—that has been fostered by a singular but often self-defeating love of the New York Mets."

Phillips first met Goldsborough when he guest lectured in one of her courses.

"Ms. Goldsborough's research focus on tobacco use and other substance use immediately stood out because it remains under-examined in social work, despite tobacco use continuing to be a major public health issue," he says. "It's rare to see a doctoral student develop such a clear focus early on—and even rarer to see them sustain that focus throughout their training."

Phillips notes that Goldsborough is already establishing herself as an independent scholar.

"As her GRA supervisor, I quickly learned that Ms. Goldsborough has a remarkable aptitude for research, particularly in quantitative methods," Phillips says. "She is one of the most highly regarded doctoral students in our school. She is also a genuine, respectful, and collaborative colleague."

After earning her Ph.D. this August, Goldsborough will continue her training as a postdoctoral fellow at the Yale School of Medicine's Division of Prevention and Community Research in the Department of Psychiatry. The two-year fellowship will allow her to deepen her work on substance use and prevention while expanding her interdisciplinary research skills.

"My research, teaching interests, social work practice, and education are all driven by a goal of improving health outcomes," she says.

More information:
Elizabeth J. Goldsborough et al, Examining the Bidirectional Relationship Between Food Insecurity and Cigarette Smoking: Evidence from a Cross-Lagged Panel Analysis, American Journal of Health Promotion (2026). DOI: 10.1177/08901171261429792

Provided by University of Connecticut