The Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research (OBSSR) archives materials older than three years that are no longer updated. This content is available for historical purposes, and the information and links may have changed over time.
Eric brings a wealth of health innovation experience to the PMI effort as a social scientist and researcher, entrepreneur and business leader, patient and patient advocate, and policy advocate and thought leader. He has pioneered and co-founded some…
An emerging body of literature demonstrates that physicians, like the general population, display implicit bias even as they deny bias on measures that directly ask about their attitudes and opinions. Much of this work has centered on bias toward Afr…
In understanding the cause of many diseases, the search for genes has moved from the identification of rare high-risk variants to that of common low-risk variants. The size of samples required for adequate power has correspondingly increased. In the…
Our trusted clinical treatment research methods have served us well, but many of them, at least in their current form, are in need of significant upgrade and transformation. These changes are needed not just because of technological advances; the pre…
Understanding the way patients think and behave is critical for effective care. That theme is paramount in a workshop to be hosted by the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), in collaboration with the Behavioral and Social Scien…
What do hearing the voice of God, experiencing hallucinations, hearing voices, and suddenly feeling motivated to pray have in common? According to anthropologist Tanya Marie Luhrmann, Ph.D., they are all shaped by cultural influences. Luhrmann studie…
OBSSR Director, William Riley, Ph.D., will have a packed schedule, in which, not surprisingly, precision medicine features prominently. Dr. Riley’s conference starts on Tuesday evening with him serving as a panelist for the new SBM Leadership Institu…
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) received $275 million in funding over two years through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Largely, these funds—received through a series of grants and initiatives—helped intensify and expand scie…
I love evolution. I've been interested in studying evolution almost all of my life. I started collecting fossils when I was a tiny child, and I've always been interested in what life on earth looked like hundreds of thousands and millions of years ag…
What do place and the built environment have to do with alcohol and drug addictions? According to Debra Furr-Holden, Ph.D., quite a bit. Behavioral and mental health studies have shown that environmental risk is a predictor of behavior in highly diso…
