Jane Dixon

Jane Dixon, Ph.D. has taught research method and conducted research at Yale University School of Nursing since 1975. Her research has focused on behavioral factors in promotion of health, and management of illness, across various populations.  Dr. Dixon’s current scholarship includes two major thrusts. 

Careful measurement is at the core of science.  One thrust of Dr. Dixon’s scholarship is the development and modification of measures, based on psychometric principles.  She has led or collaborated in projects to develop various measures, including the Environmental Health Engagement Profile (EHEP), as well as several measures of self and/or family management.  She is currently working on a book concerning methods for modifying measures – including language translation, developing short versions, and other forms of modification. 

Dr. Dixon’s current substantive focus is environment health, especially engagement of people in promoting healthy environment - i.e., people’s concerns about environmental hazards which may affect health, and responses to hazards by those who are most affected.   A foundation for this work is the formulation of an integrated model which identifies four domains of environmental health knowledge (Dixon & Dixon, 2002 – cited below).  The model is intended to unify biological and behavioral factors in environmental health research, and it has served as basis for study of environmental health hazards by Dr. Dixon and by others.   

Dr. Dixon was honored to receive the Annie Goodrich Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2006. She feels privileged to teach and collaborate with nurses of Yale, in support of YSN’s mission of “better health for all people.”  She is especially pleased to have opportunity to collaborate with doctoral students and recent graduates in their early career publication of their work.