Pathways for translating behavioral medicine research to practice and policy

The diversity of behavioral medicine, including investigators’ disciplines, health conditions, settings, and intervention approaches, creates challenges for promoting the translation of research to practice and policy. Most papers on research translation focus on one pathway, so there is a need for a model that considers multiple pathways of research translation. The purpose is to propose a model of translating research to practice and policy that is broad enough to apply to many behavioral medicine scenarios and suggests options for behavioral medicine investigators to become engaged in research translation. This is a commentary, with examples drawn from scientific and gray literature. A model is proposed that describes five pathways of research translation: research, practice, business, policy, and public opinion. Target audiences, approaches, communication materials, and examples are suggested for each translation pathway. Resources are available for overcoming barriers to research translation. The main benefit of becoming engaged in research translation is a higher likelihood of health impact from the research. Researchers can choose one or more of the pathways of research translation that are suitable for their situation.