The Neurocognitive Rehabilitation Research Laboratory in the Division of Mental Health Services & Policy Research (DMHSPR) at Columbia University Medical Center/New York State Psychiatric Institute is devoted to studying methods to promote cognitive and functional recovery in schizophrenia, mild cognitive impairment, severe depression, clinical-high risk, and Alzheimer’s disease. The lab is directed by Jimmy Choi, PsyD, Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry.
We are studying methods to improve memory and quality of life in older adults at risk for dementia and those with early dementia (Alzheimer’s Association).
We collaborate with Susan Essock, PhD, Chief of the Department of Mental Health Services and Policy Research, in developing decisional informatics algorithms to synthesize cognitive and vocational therapies for people with schizophrenia (NIMH).
In collaboration with Joan Prudic, MD, Director of ECT Services at Columbia University Medical Center, and the Division of Experimental Therapeutics, we are studying a novel memory training paradigm for ECT-related cognitive impairments (NIMH).
We collaborate with Daniel Javitt, MD, PhD, Chief of the Department of Experimental Therapeutics, in developing neuroimaging paradigms to study the neural basis of intrinsic motivation and anhedonia in normals and schizophrenia (Brain Behavior Research Foundation).
We collaborate with Matt Gold, CTRS, Director of Volunteer Services, Elizabeth Golden Roose, LCSW, Director of Social Work Department, and Dana Moore, CTRS, Director of Recreation Therapy, in a clinical work rehabilitation initiative called the Work and Cognitive Recovery Program. The program helps people with severe mental illness make meaningful gains in employment or school.
We collaborate with Cheryl Cocoran, MD, Lisa Dixon, MD, Susan Essock, PhD, and Daniel Javitt, MD, PhD, in studying methods to improve processing speed and social functioning in adolescents and young adults at clinical high risk for psychosis.
We collaborate with Chris Bowie, PhD, Associate Professor and Director of the Cognitive and Psychotic Disorders Lab at Queen’s University in Canada, and his doctoral student, Katherine Holshausen, in studying their novel treatment for people with schizophrenia called “Structured Therapy for the Enhancement of Purposeful Speech.” This therapy builds effective communication skills central to successful social and work-related interactions, from developing interpersonal relationships with co-workers and peers, advocating for oneself to medical professionals or work supervisors, participating in talk-based therapies, and demonstrating appropriate skills during an interview or classroom setting.
For more information, please contact Megan Fane (212-740-7331) at fanemeg@nyspi.columbia.edu
Lab Staff
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Megan T. Fane (fanemeg@nyspi.columbia.edu, 212-740-7331, Audubon Building Office 323)
Megan recently received her MA in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University Teacher’s College. She is interested in studying self-efficacy and how it relates to hopelessness and depression in adolescent and geriatric populations. She is also interested in family environments and the role they play in mental illness. She will be presenting her work titled “Cognitive behavioral therapy to enhance cognitive rehabilitation efficacy in Alzheimer’s disease” at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Boston. Megan is the lab coordinator and oversees all aspects of lab activities. In her spare time, Megan likes to read food magazines and experiment in the kitchen and go to the theater with her hubby.
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Carol Pauls (paulsca@nyspi.columbia.edu, 212-740-7788, Audubon Building Office 324, NYSPI ECT Suite 5301)
Carol has over 15 years of experience providing therapeutic services in diverse clinical and research settings. Currently, she directs the Work and Cognitive Recovery Program and helps coordinate the ECT and memory training study in patients with treatment resistant depression. Carol has developed an inventory with Dr. Choi to assess quality of life in depressed patients receiving ECT. Her scale is currently undergoing psychometric development trials at several institutions. She also assists Stefan Rowny, MD, in his study on the effectiveness of Magnetic Seizure Therapy for severe depression.
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Amanda Chue (Chueama@nyspi.columbia.edu, Audubon Building Office 324)
Amanda grew up in the suburbs of New York and graduated from Cornell University in 2010 with a B.S. in Human Development. She is generally interested in emotional processes and self regulation. She presented her work titled, “Addressing Defeatist Beliefs in Vocational Rehabilitation for Schizophrenia” at the Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies in National Harbor, Maryland. Amanda is a research assistant and therapist in the Work and Cognitive Recovery Program and the Alzheimer’s Association study. She will be attending the PhD program in clinical psychology at American University in the fall. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, running, and traveling to new places.
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Elaina Montague (montagu@nyspi.columbia.edu)
Elaina is an undergraduate senior from Bernard M. Baruch College, graduating this May (2013) with a B.A. in Honors Psychology. Some of her particular research interests include understanding Neurocognitive and Social Cognitive aspects of treatment for schizophrenia and other related disorders. She was mentored by Dr. Choi in The Pipeline Honors Program at CUNY where she studied the relationship between negative symptoms, intrinsic motivation and learning outcomes for patients with schizophrenia in a cognitive remediation program. As a research assistant in the lab, Elaina has studied the relationship between motivation, avolition, and symptoms in schizophrenia. She presented her work on motivation in schizophrenia at the Society for the Study of Motivation's 5th Annual Meeting in Chicago, the Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies in National Harbor, Maryland, and the International Congress of Schizophrenia Research in Orlando. Following graduation, she will pursue doctoral training in Clinical Psychology under the mentorship of Dr. William Spaulding at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. There, she will be joining the Serious Mental Illness Research (SMI) Group, exploring factors that influence rehabilitation and recovery for chronic and severe mental illness. In addition to working in lab, Elaina enjoys writing long letters, listening to Bossa Nova over coffee and releasing her inner kid through high-contact sports and outdoor adventures.
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Joseph Bisoglio (jb2561@columbia.edu)
Broadly, Joseph’s research interests center on identifying the cognitive and affective variables that predict psychosocial functioning and outcomes in schizophrenia and other forms of severe mental illness. Of these predictive variables, he is particularly interested in social cognition, executive functions, and emotion regulation, and in how the biological correlates of these domains might be used to elucidate the etiopathology of psychosis. He currently is a therapist in the Work and Cognitive Recovery Program and an investigator on Dr. Corcoran’s study on social cognition and tDCS.
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Amanda Gooding (gooding@fordham.edu)
Amanda is a 5th year clinical psychology graduate student at Fordham University. Prior to entering graduate school she completed her undergraduate studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, and worked for two years as a research assistant in the Neuropsychology Assessment Laboratory at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. She will earn her PhD in 2014 after completing a pre-doctoral internship in neuropsychology at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. As a research scientist in the laboratory, she is examining the relationship between baseline executive functioning and treatment outcomes in older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment.
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Casey Baginski (baginsk@nyspi.columbia.edu, Audubon Building 324 cubicle)
Casey received her Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Vassar College in May 2012. Casey has worked at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division, primarily in the Second Chance Program, a long-term inpatient unit for individuals with schizophrenia persistent and refractory symptoms. Casey has a wide range of research interests. She is currently focusing on assessing formal thought disorder in individuals with schizophrenia. She is a laboratory assistant helping with the Mild Cognitive Impairment study, the motivation studies in schizophrenia, and the project on the Structured Therapy for the Enhancement of Purposeful Speech.
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Mary Feng (mf2665@barnard.edu)
Mary is a senior at Barnard College working on her honors thesis titled “The Impact of Cognitive Remediation Therapy, Processing Speed, Social Anhedonia and Social Anxiety on Social Function in Clinically High Risk Patients” with Drs. Holly Moore, Cheryl Corcoran, and Jimmy Choi. She eventually plans to pursue a career in a medical-related field and hope to work with the pediatric population. When not taking classes or in the lab, she is in action as a black belt in Hapkido and an EMT in Brooklyn.
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Josh Mervis (jem2240@columbia.edu)
Josh is a student in Columbia University's post-baccalaureate psychology program and received his B.A. from Brandeis University. He assists with cognitive assessment and symptom interviewing in the Work and Cognitive Recovery Program, the ECT memory training study, and the NASRAD fMRI trial. In addition to his work with the lab, Josh assists with social psychology research in Columbia University's department of psychology. He also volunteers with The Trevor Project, an organization in support of youth suicide prevention efforts in the LGBTQ community
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Ji Eun (Esther) Sin (jes2275@columbia.edu)
Esther received her B.S, in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Finance from Boston University. She spent some time in brand and consumer experience consulting guiding brands to define their brand stories and engage with their audiences in a relevant and compelling way. Esther's passion shifted from driving organizations to excel to helping human beings understand and overcome their troubles. She is currently earning her M.A. in clinical psychology at Columbia University's Teachers College. She is also a part of Dr. Suniya S. Luthar's lab at Teachers College, studying risk and resilience in adolescents in affluent communities pertaining to substance use and emotional distress. Esther's research interests are on the role of family in promoting mental health, including family processes and family treatment among individuals with substance-related disorders, depression, and schizophrenia. Esther was raised in Kenya, Moscow, Seoul, Chicago, and New York.
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