Julene Johnson, PhD
Professor
Institute for Health & Aging
School of Nursing

She is a long-standing faculty mentor in the UCSF Center for Aging in Diverse Communities (a NIA-funded Resource Center for Minority Aging Research). Dr. obtained her PhD at the University of Texas at Dallas and completed postdoctoral training at the University of California, Irvine's Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia (now called the MIND Institute). Her undergraduate degree is in music.

Dr. Johnson's research program focuses on two primary themes: 1) developing and testing music-based interventions (MBIs) to promote health and well-being among older adults with and without cognitive impairment, and 2) understanding brain and cognitive function among diverse older adults. Her research on community-engaged health promotion involves racial/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse older adults. In 2010, she was a Fulbright scholar in Finland where she studied how singing in a community choir influences quality of life and well-being among older adults.

Dr. Johnson served as the Associate Dean for Research for the UCSF School of Nursing (2017-2023) and the UCSF representative and Chair of the Advisory Committee for the University of California Humanities Research Institute (2013-2016).

• Factors related to COVID-19 vaccine intention in Latino communities.
  PloS one 2022 Perez A, Johnson JK, Marquez DX, Keiser S, Martinez P, Guerrero J, Tran T, Portacolone E
• Increasing engagement of Hispanics/Latinos in clinical trials on Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.
  Alzheimer's & dementia (New York, N. Y.) 2022 Marquez DX, Perez A, Johnson JK, Jaldin M, Pinto J, Keiser S, Tran T, Martinez P, Guerrero J, Portacolone E
• The Living Alone with Cognitive Impairment Project's Policy Advisory Group on Long-Term Services and Supports: Setting a Research Equity Agenda.
  International journal of environmental research and public health 2022 Portacolone E, Torres JM, Johnson JK, Benton D, Rapp T, Tran T, Martinez P, Graham C
• Mobile Medical Clinics in the United States Post-Affordable Care Act: An Integrative Review.
  Population health management 2022 Coaston A, Lee SJ, Johnson J, Hardy-Peterson M, Weiss S, Stephens C
• Meaningful Activities and Sources of Meaning for Community-Dwelling People Living with Dementia.
  Journal of the American Medical Directors Association 2021 Allison TA, Gubner JM, Oh A, Harrison KL, Pham K, Barnes DE, Johnson JK, Covinsky KE, Smith AK
• The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Lived Experience of Diverse Older Adults Living Alone With Cognitive Impairment.
  The Gerontologist 2021 Portacolone E, Chodos A, Halpern J, Covinsky KE, Keiser S, Fung J, Rivera E, Tran T, Bykhovsky C, Johnson JK
• Beneficial effects of choir singing on cognition and well-being of older adults: Evidence from a cross-sectional study.
  PloS one 2021 Pentikäinen E, Pitkäniemi A, Siponkoski ST, Jansson M, Louhivuori J, Johnson JK, Paajanen T, Särkämö T
• Communicating Awareness About COVID-19 Through Songs: An Example From Ghana.
  Frontiers in public health 2021 Thompson RGA, Nutor JJ, Johnson JK
• Earning the Trust of African American Communities to Increase Representation in Dementia Research.
  Ethnicity & disease 2020 Portacolone E, Palmer NR, Lichtenberg P, Waters CM, Hill CV, Keiser S, Vest L, Maloof M, Tran T, Martinez P, Guerrero J, Johnson JK
• Multi-cultural perspectives on group singing among diverse older adults.
  Geriatric nursing (New York, N.Y.) 2020 Allison TA, Nápoles AM, Johnson JK, Stewart AL, Rodriguez-Salazar M, Peringer J, Sherman S, Ortez-Alfaro J, Villero O, Portacolone E
• Exploring the effects of visual and literary arts interventions on psychosocial well-being of diverse older adults: a mixed methods pilot study.
  Arts & health 2020 Johnson JK, Carpenter T, Goodhart N, Stewart AL, du Plessis L, Coaston A, Clark K, Lazar A, Chapline J
• Expectations and Concerns of Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment About Their Relationship With Medical Providers: A Call for Therapeutic Alliances.
  Qualitative health research 2020 Portacolone E, Covinsky KE, Johnson JK, Halpern J
• A Community Choir Intervention to Promote Well-Being Among Diverse Older Adults: Results From the Community of Voices Trial.
  The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences 2020 Johnson JK, Stewart AL, Acree M, Nápoles AM, Flatt JD, Max WB, Gregorich SE
• Seeking a Sense of Belonging.
  Generations (San Francisco, Calif.) 2020 Portacolone E, Johnson JK, Halpern J, Kotwal A
• Walking the Tightrope between Study Participant Autonomy and Researcher Integrity: The Case Study of a Research Participant with Alzheimer's Disease Pursuing Euthanasia in Switzerland.
  Journal of empirical research on human research ethics : JERHRE 2019 Portacolone E, Covinsky KE, Johnson JK, Rubinstein RL, Halpern J
• Musical and Cognitive Abilities in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment.
  Psychology of music 2019 Petrovsky DV, Johnson JK, Tkacs N, Mechanic-Hamilton D, Hamilton RH, Cacchione PZ
• The Precarity of Older Adults Living Alone With Cognitive Impairment.
  The Gerontologist 2019 Portacolone E, Rubinstein RL, Covinsky KE, Halpern J, Johnson JK
• Progress and future challenges in aging and diversity research in the United States.
  Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association 2018 Brewster P, Barnes L, Haan M, Johnson JK, Manly JJ, Nápoles AM, Whitmer RA, Carvajal-Carmona L, Early D, Farias S, Mayeda ER, Melrose R, Meyer OL, Zeki Al Hazzouri A, Hinton L, Mungas D
• NIH/Kennedy Center Workshop on Music and the Brain: Finding Harmony.
  Neuron 2018 Cheever T, Taylor A, Finkelstein R, Edwards E, Thomas L, Bradt J, Holochwost SJ, Johnson JK, Limb C, Patel AD, Tottenham N, Iyengar S, Rutter D, Fleming R, Collins FS
• Correlates of Subjective Cognitive Decline in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Older Adults.
  Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD 2018 Flatt JD, Johnson JK, Karpiak SE, Seidel L, Larson B, Brennan-Ing M
• The Effects and Meanings of Receiving a Diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment or Alzheimer's Disease When One Lives Alone.
  Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD 2018 Portacolone E, Johnson JK, Covinsky KE, Halpern J, Rubinstein RL
• Recruitment and baseline characteristics of the Community of Voices choir study to promote the health and well-being of diverse older adults.
  Contemporary clinical trials communications 2017 Johnson JK, Gregorich SE, Acree M, Nápoles AM, Flatt JD, Pounds D, Pabst A, Stewart AL
• Factors associated with cognitive impairment in a cohort of older homeless adults: Results from the HOPE HOME study.
  Drug and alcohol dependence 2017 Hurstak E, Johnson JK, Tieu L, Guzman D, Ponath C, Lee CT, Jamora CW, Kushel M
• Survival after dementia diagnosis in five racial/ethnic groups.
  Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association 2017 Mayeda ER, Glymour MM, Quesenberry CP, Johnson JK, Pérez-Stable EJ, Whitmer RA
• The National Endowment for the Arts Guide to Community-Engaged Research in the Arts and Health
  The National Endowment for the Arts Guide to Community-Engaged Research in the Arts and Health 2016 Chapline J & Johnson JK
• Comparison of Well-being of Older Adult Choir Singers and the General Population in Finland: A Case-Control Study.
  Musicae scientiae : the journal of the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music 2016 Johnson JK, Louhivuori J, Siljander E
• Pattern of Emotional Benefits Induced by Regular Singing and Music Listening in Dementia.
  Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 2016 Särkämö T, Laitinen S, Numminen A, Kurki M, Johnson JK, Rantanen P
• Clinical and Demographic Factors Associated with the Cognitive and Emotional Efficacy of Regular Musical Activities in Dementia.
  Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD 2016 Särkämö T, Laitinen S, Numminen A, Kurki M, Johnson JK, Rantanen P
• Study protocol for a cluster randomized trial of the Community of Voices choir intervention to promote the health and well-being of diverse older adults.
  BMC public health 2015 Johnson JK, Nápoles AM, Stewart AL, Max WB, Santoyo-Olsson J, Freyre R, Allison TA, Gregorich SE
• Deficits in Everyday Function Differ in AD and FTD.
  Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2015 Park LQ, Harvey D, Johnson J, Farias ST
• Music, neurology, and psychology in the nineteenth century.
  Progress in brain research 2015 Graziano AB, Johnson JK
• Some early cases of aphasia and the capacity to sing.
  Progress in brain research 2015 Johnson JK, Graziano AB
• Hearing and music in dementia.
  Handbook of clinical neurology 2015 Johnson JK, Chow ML
• Reporting standards for studies of diagnostic test accuracy in dementia: The STARDdem Initiative.
  Neurology 2014 Noel-Storr AH, McCleery JM, Richard E, Ritchie CW, Flicker L, Cullum SJ, Davis D, Quinn TJ, Hyde C, Rutjes AW, Smailagic N, Marcus S, Black S, Blennow K, Brayne C, Fiorivanti M, Johnson JK, Köpke S, …
• Life experience and demographic influences on cognitive function in older adults.
  Neuropsychology 2014 Brewster PW, Melrose RJ, Marquine MJ, Johnson JK, Napoles A, MacKay-Brandt A, Farias S, Reed B, Mungas D
• Time to reinvent the science of dementia: the need for care and social integration.
  Aging & mental health 2013 Portacolone E, Berridge C, K Johnson J, Schicktanz S
• Cognitive, emotional, and social benefits of regular musical activities in early dementia: randomized controlled study.
  The Gerontologist 2013 Särkämö T, Tervaniemi M, Laitinen S, Numminen A, Kurki M, Johnson JK, Rantanen P
• Cholinergic enhancement of functional networks in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.
  Annals of neurology 2013 Pa J, Berry AS, Compagnone M, Boccanfuso J, Greenhouse I, Rubens MT, Johnson JK, Gazzaley A
• Review of "The Origins of Music"
  Psychomusicology: Music, Mind, and Brain 2013 Graziano AB and Johnson JK
• Quality of life (QOL) of older adult community choral singers in Finland.
  International psychogeriatrics 2013 Johnson JK, Louhivuori J, Stewart AL, Tolvanen A, Ross L, Era P
• Jean-Martin Charcot's role in the 19th century study of music aphasia.
  Brain : a journal of neurology 2013 Johnson JK, Lorch M, Nicolas S, Graziano A
• Neuropsychological patterns differ by type of left ventricle dysfunction in heart failure.
  Archives of clinical neuropsychology : the official journal of the National Academy of Neuropsychologists 2012 Bratzke-Bauer LC, Pozehl BJ, Paul SM, Johnson JK
• Confirmatory factor analysis of the ADNI Neuropsychological Battery.
  Brain imaging and behavior 2012 Park LQ, Gross AL, McLaren DG, Pa J, Johnson JK, Mitchell M, Manly JJ, Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
• Cortical signatures of cognition and their relationship to Alzheimer's disease.
  Brain imaging and behavior 2012 Gross AL, Manly JJ, Pa J, Johnson JK, Park LQ, Mitchell MB, Melrose RJ, Inouye SK, McLaren DG, Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
• Longitudinal change in neuropsychological performance using latent growth models: a study of mild cognitive impairment.
  Brain imaging and behavior 2012 Johnson JK, Gross AL, Pa J, McLaren DG, Park LQ, Manly JJ, Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
• Seniorikuorolaulajien sosioekonominen tausta, koettu hyvinvointi ja terveys
  Yhteiskuntapolitiikka 2012 Louhivuori J, Siljander E, Luoma M-L & Johnson JK
• A brief neuropsychological battery for use in the chronic heart failure population.
  European journal of cardiovascular nursing 2012 Bauer L, Pozehl B, Hertzog M, Johnson J, Zimmerman L, Filipi M
• Hermann Oppenheim's observations about music in aphasia.
  Journal of the history of the neurosciences 2012 Graziano AB, Pech A, Hou C, Johnson JK
• Cognition in heart failure: an overview of the concepts and their measures.
  Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners 2011 Bauer LC, Johnson JK, Pozehl BJ
• Sensitivity of revised diagnostic criteria for the behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia.
  Brain : a journal of neurology 2011 Rascovsky K, Hodges JR, Knopman D, Mendez MF, Kramer JH, Neuhaus J, van Swieten JC, Seelaar H, Dopper EG, Onyike CU, Hillis AE, Josephs KA, Boeve BF, Kertesz A, Seeley WW, Rankin KP, Johnson JK, Gorno…
• Dementia=(MC)2: a 4-item screening test for mild cognitive impairment and dementia.
  Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2011 Douglas VC, Neuhaus J, Johnson JK, Racine CA, Miller BL, Josephson SA
• Music recognition in frontotemporal lobar degeneration and Alzheimer disease.
  Cognitive and behavioral neurology : official journal of the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology 2011 Johnson JK, Chang CC, Brambati SM, Migliaccio R, Gorno-Tempini ML, Miller BL, Janata P
• Baseline predictors of clinical progression among patients with dysexecutive mild cognitive impairment.
  Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders 2010 Johnson JK, Pa J, Boxer AL, Kramer JH, Freeman K, Yaffe K
• Gray matter correlates of set-shifting among neurodegenerative disease, mild cognitive impairment, and healthy older adults.
  Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS 2010 Pa J, Possin KL, Wilson SM, Quitania LC, Kramer JH, Boxer AL, Weiner MW, Johnson JK
• Sound naming in neurodegenerative disease.
  Brain and cognition 2010 Chow ML, Brambati SM, Gorno-Tempini ML, Miller BL, Johnson JK
• Patterns of cerebral hypoperfusion in amnestic and dysexecutive MCI.
  Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2009 Chao LL, Pa J, Duarte A, Schuff N, Weiner MW, Kramer JH, Miller BL, Freeman KM, Johnson JK
• Rule violation errors are associated with right lateral prefrontal cortex atrophy in neurodegenerative disease.
  Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS 2009 Possin KL, Brambati SM, Rosen HJ, Johnson JK, Pa J, Weiner MW, Miller BL, Kramer JH
• Clinical-neuroimaging characteristics of dysexecutive mild cognitive impairment.
  Annals of neurology 2009 Pa J, Boxer A, Chao LL, Gazzaley A, Freeman K, Kramer J, Miller BL, Weiner MW, Neuhaus J, Johnson JK
• Oculomotor function in frontotemporal lobar degeneration, related disorders and Alzheimer's disease.
  Brain : a journal of neurology 2008 Garbutt S, Matlin A, Hellmuth J, Schenk AK, Johnson JK, Rosen H, Dean D, Kramer J, Neuhaus J, Miller BL, Lisberger SG, Boxer AL
• Distinct MRI atrophy patterns in autopsy-proven Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar degeneration.
  American journal of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias 2007 Rabinovici GD, Seeley WW, Kim EJ, Gorno-Tempini ML, Rascovsky K, Pagliaro TA, Allison SC, Halabi C, Kramer JH, Johnson JK, Weiner MW, Forman MS, Trojanowski JQ, Dearmond SJ, Miller BL, Rosen HJ
• Diagnostic criteria for the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD): current limitations and future directions.
  Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2007 Rascovsky K, Hodges JR, Kipps CM, Johnson JK, Seeley WW, Mendez MF, Knopman D, Kertesz A, Mesulam M, Salmon DP, Galasko D, Chow TW, Decarli C, Hillis A, Josephs K, Kramer JH, Weintraub S, Grossman M, …
• Executive function, more than global cognition, predicts functional decline and mortality in elderly women.
  The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences 2007 Johnson JK, Lui LY, Yaffe K
• Cognitive and motor assessment in autopsy-proven corticobasal degeneration.
  Neurology 2007 Murray R, Neumann M, Forman MS, Farmer J, Massimo L, Rice A, Miller BL, Johnson JK, Clark CM, Hurtig HI, Gorno-Tempini ML, Lee VM, Trojanowski JQ, Grossman M
• Multiple cognitive deficits in amnestic mild cognitive impairment.
  Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders 2006 Kramer JH, Nelson A, Johnson JK, Yaffe K, Glenn S, Rosen HJ, Miller BL
• Frontotemporal dementia: clinicopathological correlations.
  Annals of neurology 2006 Forman MS, Farmer J, Johnson JK, Clark CM, Arnold SE, Coslett HB, Chatterjee A, Hurtig HI, Karlawish JH, Rosen HJ, Van Deerlin V, Lee VM, Miller BL, Trojanowski JQ, Grossman M
• Anti-GAD antibody cerebellar ataxia mimicking Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
  Clinical neurology and neurosurgery 2006 Chang CC, Eggers SD, Johnson JK, Haman A, Miller BL, Geschwind MD
• Richard Wallaschek’s nineteenth-century contributions to the psychology of music
  Music Perception 2006 Graziano A & Johnson JK
• The influence of scientific research on nineteenth-century musical thought: The work of Richard Wallaschek
  International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music 2006 Graziano A & Johnson JK
• Comparison of family histories in FTLD subtypes and related tauopathies.
  Neurology 2005 Goldman JS, Farmer JM, Wood EM, Johnson JK, Boxer A, Neuhaus J, Lomen-Hoerth C, Wilhelmsen KC, Lee VM, Grossman M, Miller BL
• Presenilin 1 Glu318Gly polymorphism: interpret with caution.
  Archives of neurology 2005 Goldman JS, Johnson JK, McElligott K, Suchowersky O, Miller BL, Van Deerlin VM
• Frontotemporal dementia progresses to death faster than Alzheimer disease.
  Neurology 2005 Roberson ED, Hesse JH, Rose KD, Slama H, Johnson JK, Yaffe K, Forman MS, Miller CA, Trojanowski JQ, Kramer JH, Miller BL
• Frontotemporal lobar degeneration: demographic characteristics of 353 patients.
  Archives of neurology 2005 Johnson JK, Diehl J, Mendez MF, Neuhaus J, Shapira JS, Forman M, Chute DJ, Roberson ED, Pace-Savitsky C, Neumann M, Chow TW, Rosen HJ, Forstl H, Kurz A, Miller BL
• Learning and memory as a function of age in Down syndrome: a study using animal-based tasks.
  Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry 2005 Nelson L, Johnson JK, Freedman M, Lott I, Groot J, Chang M, Milgram NW, Head E
• Neuropsychological and functional measures of severity in Alzheimer disease, frontotemporal dementia, and semantic dementia.
  Alzheimer disease and associated disorders 2004 Rosen HJ, Narvaez JM, Hallam B, Kramer JH, Wyss-Coray C, Gearhart R, Johnson JK, Miller BL
• Neurologic signs and mobility limitations: a neglected link in the elderly.
  The American journal of medicine 2004 Johnson JK, Miller BL
• 17q-linked frontotemporal dementia-amyotrophic lateral sclerosis without tau mutations with tau and alpha-synuclein inclusions.
  Archives of neurology 2004 Wilhelmsen KC, Forman MS, Rosen HJ, Alving LI, Goldman J, Feiger J, Lee JV, Segall SK, Kramer JH, Lomen-Hoerth C, Rankin KP, Johnson J, Feiler HS, Weiner MW, Lee VM, Trojanowski JQ, Miller BL
• Cognition and anatomy in three variants of primary progressive aphasia.
  Annals of neurology 2004 Gorno-Tempini ML, Dronkers NF, Rankin KP, Ogar JM, Phengrasamy L, Rosen HJ, Johnson JK, Weiner MW, Miller BL
• Isolated executive impairment and associated frontal neuropathology.
  Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders 2004 Johnson JK, Vogt BA, Kim R, Cotman CW, Head E
• Distinctive neuropsychological patterns in frontotemporal dementia, semantic dementia, and Alzheimer disease.
  Cognitive and behavioral neurology : official journal of the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology 2003 Kramer JH, Jurik J, Sha SJ, Rankin KP, Rosen HJ, Johnson JK, Miller BL
• August Knoblauch and amusia: a nineteenth-century cognitive model of music.
  Brain and cognition 2003 Johnson JK, Graziano AB
• Auditory event-related potentials during target detection are abnormal in mild cognitive impairment.
  Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology 2002 Golob EJ, Johnson JK, Starr A
• Oxidation of Abeta and plaque biogenesis in Alzheimer's disease and Down syndrome.
  Neurobiology of disease 2001 Head E, Garzon-Rodriguez W, Johnson JK, Lott IT, Cotman CW, Glabe C
• Sensory cortical interactions in aging, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's disease.
  Neurobiology of aging 2001 Golob EJ, Miranda GG, Johnson JK, Starr A
• Clinical and pathological evidence for a frontal variant of Alzheimer disease.
  Archives of neurology 1999 Johnson JK, Head E, Kim R, Starr A, Cotman CW
• Detecting symmetric patterns in EEG data: a new method of analysis.
  Clinical EEG (electroencephalography) 1999 Bodner M, Shaw GL, Gabriel R, Johnson JK, Murias M, Swanson J
• Macrostructure and inferential processing in discourse of aphasic patients
  Psychology of Language and Communication 1999 Ulatowska HK, Chapman SB, Johnson JK & Branch C
• Initiation and propagation stages of beta-amyloid are associated with distinctive apolipoprotein E, age, and gender profiles.
  Brain research 1998 Johnson JK, McCleary R, Oshita MH, Cotman CW
• The dependence of coherence estimates of spontaneous EEG on gender and music training
  Music Perception 1996 Johnson JK, Petsche H, Richter P, von Stein A & Filz O
• Discourse in early Alzheimer’s disease versus normal advanced aging
  American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology 1995 Chapman SB, Ulatowska, HK, King K, Johnson JK & McIntire DD
• Processing of proverbs in aphasics and old-elderly
  Clinical Aphasiology 1995 Ulatowska HK, Chapman SB & Johnson JK