Judith L. Rapoport is an American psychiatrist. She is the chief of the Child Psychiatry Branch at the

National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...

(NIMH), part of the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

(NIH) in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

. Her research focuses on diagnosis in

child psychiatry Child and adolescent psychiatry (or pediatric psychiatry) is a branch of psychiatry that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental disorders in children, adolescents, and their families. It investigates the biopsychosocial fact ...

attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple con ...

, and

obsessive–compulsive disorder Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder in which an individual has intrusive thoughts (an ''obsession'') and feels the need to perform certain routines (''Compulsive behavior, compulsions'') repeatedly to relieve the dis ...

. Rapoport's research group at NIMH also studies clinical

phenomenology Phenomenology may refer to: Art * Phenomenology (architecture), based on the experience of building materials and their sensory properties Philosophy * Phenomenology (Peirce), a branch of philosophy according to Charles Sanders Peirce (1839� ...

neurobiology Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions, and its disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, ...

, and treatment of childhood-onset schizophrenia. Rapoport is the author of the bestselling book, ''The Boy Who Couldn't Stop Washing: The Experience and Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder'' (Plume, 1989), about obsessive–compulsive disorder.

Education

In 1955, Rapoport received her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree, graduating

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

and ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' from

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...

Swarthmore, Pennsylvania Swarthmore ( , ) is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Swarthmore was originally named Westdale in honor of painter Benjamin West, who was one of the early residents of the town. The name was changed to Swarthmore after ...

. She received her

medical degree A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...

in 1959 from

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Rapoport completed training at the

National Children's Hospital The National Children's Hospital () was a children's teaching hospital in Dublin, Ireland. It was absorbed into the Tallaght Hospital in June 1998. History The hospital was founded by Sir Philip Crampton, Sir Henry Marsh and Dr Charles Johnsto ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

and the

Karolinska University Hospital The Karolinska University Hospital () is a teaching hospital affiliated with Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, with two major sites in the municipalities of Solna and Huddinge. The hospital network is the second largest in Sweden, after ...

Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

. She completed internships at

Mount Sinai Hospital (Manhattan) Mount Sinai Hospital, founded in 1852, is one of the oldest and largest teaching hospitals in the United States. It is located in East Harlem in the New York City borough of Manhattan, on the eastern border of Central Park stretching along Madis ...

New York, New York New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harb ...

, and psychiatric residencies at

Massachusetts Mental Health Center The Massachusetts Mental Health Center is a historic psychiatric hospital complex at 75 Fenwood Road in the Longwood medical area of Boston, Massachusetts. The center was founded in 1912 as the Boston Psychopathic Hospital. Its original mai ...

in Boston, Massachusetts and

St. Elizabeths Hospital St. Elizabeths Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast Washington, D.C. operated by the District of Columbia Department of Mental Health. The hospital opened in 1855 under the name Government Hospital for th ...

in Washington, D.C. She received additional research training at NIMH's Laboratory of Psychology in

Career

Rapoport's research group at NIMH studies the clinical phenomenology,

, and treatment of childhood-onset schizophrenia. In 1984, Rapoport was named chief of NIMH's Child Psychiatry Branch. In addition to her research at NIH, she holds academic appointments in psychiatry at the

George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (abbreviated as GW Medical School, GW Medicine, or SMHS) is the professional medical school of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. SMHS is one of the most ...

and

Georgetown University School of Medicine Georgetown University School of Medicine, a medical school opened in 1851, is one of Georgetown University's five graduate schools, and is the most applied-to medical school in the nation with a matriculation rate of 1.40%. It is located on Res ...

, both in Washington, D.C. Rapoport is a member of a number of advisory committees of national professional medical organizations, including the National Anxiety Foundation and the

American Psychopathological Association The American Psychopathological Association (APPA) is an organization "devoted to the scientific investigation of psychopathology, disordered human behavior, and its biological and psychosocial substrates." The association’s primary purpose is r ...

, for which she served as president. Since 1993, she has also served as a member of the scientific council of the

Brain & Behavior Research Foundation The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that funds mental health research. It was originally called the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia & Depression, or NARSAD. It received its nonpro ...

. Rapoport has served on the editorial boards of Advances in Clinical Child Psychiatry, ''The American Journal of Psychiatry'', ''

Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry The ''Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal covering both child and adolescent psychology and psychiatry providing an interdisciplinary perspective to the multidisciplinary field of child and adolescen ...

'', and others. She has also authored and coauthored several professional medical books, more than 300 scientific research papers, and more than 200 journal articles. In the 60s and 70s she used school age children in drug trials at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

Honors

Rapoport is a member of the

National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), known as the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineerin ...

and a fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

. Some of Rapoport's honors and awards include: * G. Burroughs Mider Lecture,

, 1993 *

American Psychiatric Association The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 39,200 members who are in ...

Award for Research, 1992 * Presidential Meritorious Executive Rank Award, 1991 * Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research,

, 2002 * Edward M. Scolnick Prize in Neuroscience,

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

McGovern Institute for Brain Research The McGovern Institute for Brain Research is a research institute within MIT. Its mission is to understand how the brain works and to discover new ways to prevent or treat brain disorders. The institute was founded in 2000 by Patrick McGovern ...

, 2005 * Blanche F. Ittleson Award for Research in Child Psychiatry (1987),

Personal life

Rapoport is married to Stanley I. Rapoport, M.D., a neuroscientist at the

National Institute on Aging The National Institute on Aging (NIA) is a division of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), located in Bethesda, Maryland. The NIA itself is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The NIA leads a broad scientific effort to understand ...

who has had 19 of his research papers retracted due to scientific misconduct, whom she met at Harvard Medical School.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rapoport, Judith L. Living people American child psychiatrists American neuroscientists American women neuroscientists National Institutes of Health people Harvard Medical School alumni Swarthmore College alumni American women psychiatrists Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members of the National Academy of Medicine Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists 20th-century American women physicians 21st-century American women physicians 20th-century American physicians 21st-century American physicians Obsessive–compulsive disorder researchers

Education

Career

Honors

Personal life

Further reading

References