Lynsie Ranker
Profiles

Lynsie Ranker, PhD

Assistant Professor, Community Health Sciences - Boston University School of Public Health

(617) 358-2310
lranker@bu.edu
Crosstown Center
View Full Profile at BUMC

Biography

Lynsie Ranker (she/her) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences. She is a social epidemiologist whose research focuses on contextual factors in lived and online environments and their relationships with substance use among adolescents and young adults.

Her recent work uses a combination of epidemiologic methods and social media analytics to examine the influences of social media content on tobacco use and purchasing patterns. Other projects include: variations in alcohol use and treatment access among college students, drinking trajectories from adolescence into young adulthood, and a content analysis of poly-substance use discussions on social media. She is also passionate about teaching and mentoring the next generation of public health practitioners. She has taught courses on mass media & public health and program evaluation.

Lynsie was an A-TRAC career enhancement fellow with the American Heart Association during her postdoctoral training. She received both her PhD in epidemiology and her MPH from BUSPH. Prior to receiving her degree, she assisted program and policy evaluations as an epidemiologist with the Institute for Community Health (Cambridge Health Alliance). In her free time, she enjoys reading science fiction, eating copious amounts of nachos, and going on long walks in her neighborhood while listening to her favorite podcast.

Education

  • Boston University School of Public Health, PhD Field of Study: Epidemiology
  • Boston University School of Public Health, MPH Field of Study: Epidemiology/Social & Behavioral Sciences
  • Boston College, BS Field of Study: Biology

Websites

Classes Taught

  • SPHEP857
  • SPHSB733

Publications

  • Published on 2/6/2025

    Jebai R, Hong T, Ranker LR, Wu J, Rohila A, Fetterman JL, Cornacchione Ross J. Social Media Engagement and Quit Intentions among Youth with Exclusive E-cigarette Use: The Moderating Role of Social Norms. Nicotine Tob Res. 2025 Feb 06. PMID: 39912206.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 11/29/2024

    Wu J, Ranker LR, Origgi JM, Ma J, Hao D, Benjamin EJ, Cornacchione Ross J, Xuan Z, Wijaya D, Fetterman JL, Hong T. Protecting historically marginalized groups or targeted marketing? A computational analysis of individuals engaging with public and protected cigar-branded tweets. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2025 Jan 01; 266:112516. PMID: 39689499.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 11/12/2024

    Ranker LR, Tofu DA, Lu M, Wu J, Bhatnagar A, Robertson RM, Wijaya D, Hong T, Fetterman JL, Xuan Z. Concurrent Mentions of Vaping and Alcohol on Twitter: Latent Dirichlet Analysis. J Med Internet Res. 2024 Nov 12; 26:e51870. PMID: 39531640.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 11/4/2024

    Harlow AF, Hughes Halbert C, Ranker LR, Cho J, Thompson LK, Cockburn M, Eckel SP, Barrington-Trimis JL. Association of Perceived Neighborhood Disorder with Substance Use Behaviors and Retail Access Among Southern California Adolescents. Subst Use Misuse. 2025; 60(2):228-235. PMID: 39497034.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 10/10/2024

    Holt MK, Ranker LR, Kraus AD, Xuan Z, Greif Green J, Katz-Wise SL, Morales K. Recruitment of a U.S. Nation-Wide Sample of Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth. J Adolesc Health. 2024 Dec; 75(6):969-973. PMID: 39387727.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 9/3/2024

    Wu J, Trifiro BM, Ranker LR, Origgi JM, Benjamin EJ, Robertson RM, Bhatnagar A, Stokes AC, Xuan Z, Wijaya D, Plummer B, Cornacchione Ross J, Fetterman JL, Hong T. Health Warnings on Instagram Advertisements for Synthetic Nicotine E-Cigarettes and Engagement. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 Sep 03; 7(9):e2434434. PMID: 39269702.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 5/22/2024

    Vogel EA, Ranker LR, Harrell PT, Hart JL, Kong G, McIntosh S, Meissner HI, Ozga JE, Romer D, Stanton CA. Characteristics of Adolescents' and Young Adults' Exposure to and Engagement with Nicotine and Tobacco Product Content on Social Media. J Health Commun. 2024 Jun 02; 29(6):383-393. PMID: 38775659.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 4/26/2024

    Seymour JW, Ruggiero S, Ranker L, Thompson TA. Experiences with and unmet needs for medication abortion support: A qualitative study with US abortion support providers. Perspect Sex Reprod Health. 2024 Jun; 56(2):116-123. PMID: 38666706.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 4/4/2024

    Katz-Wise SL, Ranker LR, Korkodilos R, Conti J, Nelson KM, Xuan Z, Gordon AR. Will all youth answer sexual orientation and gender-related survey questions? An analysis of missingness in a large U.S. survey of adolescents and young adults. Psychol Methods. 2024 Apr 04. PMID: 38573664.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 2/28/2024

    Ranker LR, Wu J, Hong T, Wijaya D, Benjamin EJ, Bhatnagar A, Robertson RM, Fetterman JL, Xuan Z. Social media use, brand engagement, and tobacco product initiation among youth: Evidence from a prospective cohort study. Addict Behav. 2024 Jul; 154:108000. PMID: 38461745.

     Read At: PubMed

View 23 more publications:View Full Profile at BUMC

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