Health: A Positive Psychology Perspective

Dr. Deborah R. Phillips is a Lecturer in Extension focusing on organization management and psychology at Harvard Extension School. She has been affiliated with Harvard since 2012 when she joined the Department of Psychology as a postdoctoral scholar and then a Research Associate. Her ongoing work in Ellen Langer's Social Psychology lab focuses on learning-based cognitive methodologies in health and business applications, with research on cognitive mindfulness-based interventions in chronic illness, specifically in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson's disease, and mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Interventions include developing and testing web-based interventions and the use of psychosocial placebo interventions for clinical (for example, ALS) and non-clinical populations (for example, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration [NASA]). She focuses on identifying potential areas for innovation in organizational contexts and understanding the role of mindfulness in executive management and interpersonal engagement in public companies, nonprofits, and foundations. Before Harvard, Phillips' management experience was in large foundations, multinational for-profit companies, and consulting firms. She served as Executive Vice President (EVP) of the Atlantic Philanthropies, a $5 billion foundation started by duty-free shops founder Chuck Feeney focusing on capacity building and advocacy for marginalized groups. As EVP and Chief Operating Officer, she oversaw the internal operating units of strategic learning and organization development, communications, information technology (IT), human resources (HR), finance, and legal. During her tenure, she led the creation of interfacing systems, processes, and departments that were considered essential to Atlantic's maturation as one of the world's largest philanthropies.