EMERGE FACULTY and Staff

Faculty

Dr. Howard Shaffer is associate professor of psychology in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and director of the Division on Addictions at Cambridge Health Alliance. His research, writing and teaching on the nature and treatment of addictive behaviors have shaped how the health care field conceptualizes and treats the full range of addictive behaviors. Shaffer, a licensed psychologist and certified addictions specialist, is the editor of the journal, Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

Dr. Debi A. LaPlante is an instructor of psychology in psychiatry at HMS. She received her Ph.D. in social psychology from Harvard University in 2001. She has played an integral role in the DOA’s research projects on gambling and has served as co-investigator on the study of repeat DUI offenders. LaPlante spearheaded the development of the evidence-based self-help toolkit, “Your First Step to Change” and is senior editor of the BASIS.

Dr. Sarah Nelson received her Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Oregon in 2003. She is an instructor of psychology in psychiatry at HMS. Nelson has collaborated on the DOA’s major gambling research projects and a study of repeat DUI offenders. She is the editor of The WAGER, a monthly online report on gambling research.

Dr. Richard LaBrie, an instructor in psychiatry at HMS, joined the DOA faculty in 2000 as associate director for research and data analysis. Previously he served as deputy director of the National Technical Center for Substance Abuse Needs Assessment at HMS. At the DOA, LaBrie has led investigations of Missouri’s self-exclusion program, the first national study of gambling among college students and a multi-year study of Internet gamblers.

Production and Technology Team

Jeanne Blake is a medical reporter, author, and affiliated faculty member of the DOA. As president and founder of Family Health Productions and Blake Works, she produces, publishes and distributes research-based media to help families talk about the challenges facing young people. From 1984 to 1991 Blake was an award-winning medical reporter and anchor at Boston's CBS-TV affiliate.

Tom Fahey’s (videographer) work is seen regularly on television programs such as 60 Minutes, 20/20, Dateline NBC, and PBS documentaries.

David Skillicorn is a veteran director of photography, videographer and producer with more than 20 years experience in documentary filmmaking and broadcast television production.

Gabriel Caro joined the Division on Addictions as the web and technology manager in 2000, responsible for information technology, web site design, multimedia, and technological aspects of the DOA’s research projects. Caro manages, edits and publishes The BASIS, an addiction science information Internet portal, and adapted the EMERGE training into a Web-based e-learning platform.

Christine Reilly was appointed executive director of the Institute for Research on Pathological Gambling and Related Disorders at the Division on Addictions in 2000. Previously, she served as the first executive director of the National Center for Responsible Gaming. Reilly developed the script for the online version of EMERGE and is the administrative contact for companies enrolled in the training.