Rate My Professor Rob McGee

Professor Rob McGee is Emeritus Professor in the Department of Public Health (Dunedin) at the University of Otago, part of the Faculty of Medicine in the Health Sciences Division. With a career spanning over four decades at the university, primarily in the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine and later Public Health, he has made substantial contributions to public health research, focusing on tobacco control, youth health behaviors, and preventive strategies. In 2016, McGee was appointed Co-Director of the Cancer Society Social and Behavioural Research Unit, underscoring his leadership in social and behavioural research related to cancer prevention. His involvement in the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study has been pivotal, examining longitudinal patterns in adolescent mental health, substance use, behavior problems, and risk factors for smoking and alcohol-related issues.

McGee's research specializations include public health and tobacco, with particular emphasis on smokefree environments, the ASPIRE 2025 project for a tobacco-free Aotearoa, point-of-sale tobacco promotion, smoking cessation, and youth smoking trajectories. Key publications feature 'Tobacco smoking in adolescence predicts maladaptive coping styles in adulthood' (McGee et al., 2013, Nicotine & Tobacco Research), a systematic review 'A systematic review on the impact of point-of-sale tobacco promotion on smoking' (Robertson et al., 2015, Nicotine & Tobacco Research), 'Smoking cessation and subsequent weight change' (Robertson et al., 2014, Nicotine & Tobacco Research), 'Point-of-sale tobacco promotion and youth smoking: A meta-analysis' (Robertson et al., 2016, Tobacco Control), and 'Non-daily, low-rate daily, and high-rate daily smoking in young adults: A 17 year follow-up' (Robertson et al., 2016, Nicotine & Tobacco Research). Additional works address alcohol-related problems among university students (McGee & Kypri, 2004), school anti-bullying policies (Marsh et al., 2011), text bullying among adolescents (Marsh et al., 2010), sunburn prevention (McLeod et al., 2021), and teenagers' transport behaviors (Ward et al., 2021). McGee's extensive body of over 200 publications has advanced understanding and policy in New Zealand public health, particularly tobacco control and adolescent well-being.