Katie Potter

Katie Potter

Associate Professor of Kinesiology

Physical activity behavior change; physical activity interventions

Since many people do not like to exercise or find it difficult to fit into their busy lives, my research involves promoting activities that people enjoy or deeply value and that get them moving as a "side-effect." I am also very interested in the mental, social, and physical health benefits of the human-animal bond, and a focus of my lab is developing and testing dog-facilitated physical activity interventions.

Research Lab Website: 

UMass Behavioral Medicine Lab

Social Media: 

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Education

  • Postdoctoral Fellowship, The Miriam Hospital/Brown Medical School
  • PhD, University of South Carolina
  • MS, UNC Greensboro
  • BA, SUNY New Paltz

Key Publications

Potter, K., Marcotte, R.T., Petrucci Jr., G.J., Rajala, C., Linder, D.E., & Balzer, L.B. (In press). Examining the contribution of dog walking to total daily physical activity among dogs and their owners. Journal for the Measurement of Physical Behaviour.

Potter, K., Masteller, B., & Balzer, L.B. (2021). Examining obedience training as a physical activity intervention for dog owners: Findings from the Stealth Pet Obedience Training (SPOT) pilot study.  International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(3). doi: 10.3390/ijerph18030902

Potter, K., Teng, J., Masteller, B., aRajala, C., & Balzer, L.B. (2019). Examining how dog ‘acquisition’ affects physical activity and psychosocial well-being: Findings from the BuddyStudy pilot trial. Animals, 9(9). doi: 10.3390/ani9090666. PubMed PMID: 31500292.

Potter, K. & Sartore-Baldwin, M. (2019). Dogs as support and motivation for physical activity. Current Sports Medicine Reports, 18(7):275-280. doi: 10.1249/JSR.0000000000000611. PubMed PMID: 31283629.

Potter K, Saddiki H, Balzer L.B. (2019). Dog walking mediates the relationship between dog ownership and neighborhood social interaction. Innovation in Aging, S1(3):S201.