Susan Folkman, PhD

PhD, University of California, Berkeley
Professor of Medicine
Osher Foundation Distinguished Professor in Integrative Medicine
Director, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine

Phone: (415) 353-7719
Fax: (415) 353-7711
E-mail: folkman@ocim.ucsf.edu

The Osher Center for Integrative Medicine
Susan Folkman - Osher Center Website
UCSF Comprehensive Cancer Center

Research Interests:

I have had a long-standing interest in how people cope with stress and the relationship between coping and mental and physical health. Over the last 13 years this research has focused on the highly stressful contexts of caregiving, bereavement, chronic illness, and end-of-life care, primarily in HIV/AIDS. This research was funded by a series of grants from the National Institute of Mental Health. Observations during this research on co-occurrence of positive emotions with negative emotions over long periods of stress have led to research to understand the adaptive functions of positive emotions during stress and the coping processes that generate and sustain these emotions.

In 2001, I assumed the directorship of a center for integrative medicine at UCSF where we are developing a research program on mind-body approaches to health and healing.

Selected Recent Publications:

Stroebe MS, Folkman S, Hansson RO, Schut H. (2006). The prediction of bereavement outcome: Development of an integrative risk factor framework. Social Science and Medicine, 63, 2440-2451.

Chesney MA, Neilands TB, Chambers DB, Taylor JM, Folkman S. (2006). A validity and reliability study of the coping self-efficacy scale. British Journal of Health Psychology, 11, 421-437.

Wrubel J, Moskowitz JT, Richards AT, Prakke H, Acree M, Folkman S. (2005). Pediatric adherence: Perspectives of mothers of children with HIV. Social Science & Medicine, 61, 2423-2433.

Wilson LS, Moskowitz JT, Acree M, Heyman MB, Harmatz P, Ferrando SJ, Folkman S. (2005). The economic burden of home care for children with HIV or other chronic illnesses. American Journal of Public Health, 95, 1445-1452.

Bonanno GA, Moskowitz JT, Papa A, Folkman S. (2005). Resilience to loss in bereaved spouses, bereaved parents, and bereaved gay men. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 827-843.

Heyman MB, Harmatz P, Acree M, Wilson L, Moskowitz JT, Ferrando S, Folkman S. (2004). Economic and psychological costs for maternal caregivers of gastrostomy dependent children. The Journal of Pediatrics, 145, 511-516.

Folkman S, Moskowitz JT. (2004). Coping: Pitfalls and promises. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 745-774.

Folkman S. (2001). Revised coping theory and the process of bereavement. In M Stroebe, R Hansson, W Stroebe, H Schut, (Eds.). Handbook of Bereavement Research: Consequences, Coping, and Care, pp 563-584. Washington: American Psychological Association.

Folkman S, Moskowitz JT. (2000). Positive affect and the other side of coping. American Psychologist, 55, 647-654.

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