Professor and Director of Clinical Training, Doctoral Clinical Psychology Program, Harvard University
Richard J. McNally joined the Department of Psychology at Harvard University in 1991. He has more than 320 publications, most concerning anxiety disorders (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder), including the books Panic Disorder: A Critical Analysis (Guilford Press, 1994), Remembering Trauma (Belknap Press/Harvard University Press, 2003), and What is Mental Illness? (Belknap Press/Harvard University Press, in press).
He has conducted laboratory studies concerning cognitive functioning in adults reporting histories of childhood sexual abuse, including those reporting recovered memories of abuse. His research has been supported by the National Institute of Mental Health. He served on the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-IV PTSD and specific phobia committees, and he is an advisor to the DSM-V Anxiety Disorders Sub-Workgroup.
Professor McNally is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, winner of the 2005 Distinguished Scientist Award from the Society for the Science of Clinical Psychology, winner of the 2010 Outstanding Mentor Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, and he is on the Institute for Scientific Information's "Highly Cited" list for psychology and psychiatry.
Graduate Students
Don Robinaugh .:.
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Don's research focuses on examining the cognitive processes involved in the development and maintenance of emotional disorders following loss or trauma. He is currently conducting studies examining the role of autobiographical memory and prospection deficits in prolonged grief disorder, information processing biases in the maintenance of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following childhood sexual abuse, and the impact of memories characterized by shame and guilt in the development of depression and PTSD.
Phil Enock .:.
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Prior to landing at Harvard, Phil grew up in New York City, graduated from Williams College in 2005 (BA, Computer Science) and pursued his rock band (now disbanded) before working at Columbia for Ethan Kross in Walter Mischel's Lab and Tor Wager, and for Regina Miranda at CUNY-Hunter. He is interested in computerized treatments and their potential to reach people who need more help than they are getting. As mentioned in The Economist, Globe and Mail, and APA Monitor, Phil recently led a trial on an attention bias modification training program performed on the iPhone, iPod Touch, and Android-based phones to reduce social anxiety and worry. The trial is now in data analysis to prepare for publication. See the study page for more info or to sign up to hear about future studies. Phil and collaborator maintain an online discussion group for researchers in the area of cognitive bias modification. He is currently all set with 2 great research assistants, but anyone interested in future volunteer RA positions can send Phil a CV, so he can contact you if something opens up.
Dianne Hezel .:. email
Dianne graduated from Georgetown University with a BA in psychology and English. Her primary research interests lie in cognitive processing in anxiety disorders, particularly in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Social Anxiety Disorder. She is currently conducting studies that examine theory of mind in Social Anxiety Disorder, personality factors in non-clinical hoarders, and the relationship between emotional distress and physical pain tolerance in OCD. A Boston area native, Dianne is an avid Red Sox and Patriots fan and enjoys running and reading in her spare time.
Post-doctoral Fellows
Monique Pfaltz .:. email
Monique graduated from the University of Basel and the University of Columbia- Missouri. She completed her PhD on ambulatory assessment of anxiety with novel technologies at the University of Basel. Her research focuses on risk factors for the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders, particularly of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Currently, Monique is conducting studies on the influence of working memory capacity on emotion regulation abilities. In her spare time, she enjoys doing yoga and cooking, as well as spending time with her family, especially her son Noé.
C.A. Meyersburg .:. email
C.A.'s research addresses correlates and consequences of people embracing culturally atypical beliefs, i.e., Why do some non-psychotic people believe highly unusual or improbable things? C.A. is fascinated by unusual memory experiences and related phenomena. Her current research regards memory, cognition, creativity, and personality of people reporting recovered memories from one or more past lives. Her research has been published in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology (2009) and the Journal of Personality and Individual Differences (2011). You can hear her discuss some of her research on the Are We Alone/Big Picture Science radio program (link) C.A.'s non-research interests include traveling, playing cards, swing dancing, and enjoying time with her two pugs.
Lab Alumni
Manuel Sprung .:. email .:. Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Vienna. website while at Harvard
Hannah Reese .:. email .:. Clinical Fellow in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Massachusetts General Hospital OCD and Related Disorders Program
Bradley C. Riemann (worked with Professor McNally at Chicago Medical School)
Nader Amir (worked with Professor McNally at Chicago Medical School) .:. Associate Professor, Center for Understanding and Treating Anxiety, San Diego State University/University of California at San Diego
