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About Jo
Dr. Jo Armour Smith, PT, PhD, OCS (emeritus), is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Chapman University’s Crean College of Health and Behavioral Sciences, where she previously served as Interim Director of DPT Research and Faculty Affairs from 2022 to 2023. She earned her BSc (Hons) in Physiotherapy with First Class Honours from the University of London in 2001, Master of Manual Therapy with High Distinction from the University of Western Australia in 2007, and PhD in Biokinesiology from the University of Southern California in 2014. Her doctoral dissertation examined trunk neuromechanics during turning in individuals with recurrent low back pain under advisor Kornelia Kulig in the Musculoskeletal Biomechanics Research Lab. Following her PhD, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in USC’s Neuroplasticity and Imaging Lab with Beth Fisher, investigating neural correlates of anticipatory postural adjustments in older adults. Prior to academia, she worked as a rotational physiotherapist primarily in orthopedics at Chelsea & Westminster Hospital NHS Trust in London from 2001 to 2004 and as Senior Physical Therapist and Center Coordinator for Clinical Education at Westside Dance Physical Therapy in New York from 2004 to 2009, specializing in orthopedics and dance medicine.
Jo Armour Smith joined Chapman University as an Assistant Professor in 2015, achieving tenure as Associate Professor in 2022. Her research in the Neuromechanics Lab integrates biomechanics and neuroscience to investigate adaptations in trunk postural control during walking, turning, and multi-planar activities in response to persistent musculoskeletal pain, aging, and interventions. Notable publications include 'Gray matter morphology and pain-related disability in young adults with low back pain' (NeuroImage, 2025), 'Do people with low back pain walk differently? A systematic review and meta-analysis' (Journal of Sport and Health Science, 2022), 'Fear avoidance predicts persistent pain in young adults with low back pain: a prospective study' (Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy, 2021), and 'Identifying the neural correlates of anticipatory postural control: a novel fMRI paradigm' (Human Brain Mapping, 2023). She has earned the American Physical Therapy Association’s Early Career Investigator Award in Biomechanics Research (2020), Margaret L. Moore Award for Outstanding New Academic Faculty Member (2017), Finalist for the NIH Pain Consortium’s Mitchell Max Award (2021), and Outstanding Reviewer Award from the Journal of Sport and Health Science (2024). She has delivered keynotes at the USC Biokinesiology Lab Coat Induction (2023) and Texas Women’s University DPT Research Conference (2023).
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