Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research gets new leader

Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research gets new leader

David B. Abrams, Ph.D., will take the helm of the National Institutes of Health’s Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) in January 2005. Dr. Abrams will also serve as Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research under Dr. Elias Zerhouni, NIH Director.

Dr. Abrams currently serves as Director of Behavioral Medicine Research at Brown University, where he joint appointments as Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University School of Medicine; Director, Miriam Hospital Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine; and Founding Director, Brown University Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine.

Dr. Abrams received his Master of Science and Ph.D. degrees in Clinical Psychology from Rutgers University, and completed his internship and postdoctoral training at Brown University. He has held leadership positions in national and international professional societies, including service as President of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. He has also been Chair of the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Review Group Report on Cancer Control, and a member of the NCI's Board of Scientific Advisors.

Dr. Abrams' expertise includes integrating fundamental sciences with translational applications and policy research; addressing issues along the entire wellness-disease continuum; examining health needs and behaviors in a diversity of populations, including the underserved; and crossing life span transitions.

In his new role, Dr. Abrams will lead agency-wide initiatives in behavioral and social sciences research, and facilitate collaborations across socio-behavioral and biomedical disciplines. Dr. Abrams succeeds Raynard S. Kington, M.D., Ph.D., as the third director of the OBSSR. Dr. Kington is currently Deputy Director of NIH.