Rebecca Ferrer , PhD
Program Director
Basic Biobehavioral and Psychological Sciences Branch (BBPSB)
Behavioral Research Program (BRP)
ferrerra@mail.nih.gov
301-594-0437
Research Area: Social psychology, health psychology, affective and cognitive sciences, emotion, health behavior theory, decision science, risk perception
Rebecca Ferrer is a Health Scientist/ Program Director at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS), Behavioral Research Program (BRP), Basic Biobehavioral and Psychological Sciences Branch (BBPSB). She earned her Doctorate in Social Psychology from the University of Connecticut in 2009, with a certificate in Quantitative Methods, and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Decision Science from Carnegie Mellon University. She completed a Post-Doctoral Cancer Research and Training Award Fellowship in the Office of the Associate Director (OAD)in 2011. Rebecca's program of research centers on social psychological processes in health-related judgment and decision making, and behavior change. She is particularly interested in examining the associations among emotion and cognition, including how emotion might moderate the association between cognitions (including social cognitions) and health behavior. This program of research reflects a multidisciplinary approach, drawing from the fields of decision science, social psychology, and health psychology. Her work has focused primarily on cancer prevention behaviors such as nutrition, physical activity, and cancer screening, as well as HIV preventive behaviors such as condom use. She is also actively involved in the NCI's Theories Project, which aims to identify and execute research that will further the field of health behavior theory, including critical thought about and comparison of theory, integrative theory testing, and integration of theory into health behavior change interventions.
Secondary Branch Appointment:
Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch (HCIRB)
Current and past BRP mentors include William Klein, Kara Hall and Wendy Nelson.
Selected Publications and Presentations
Ferrer, R. A., Klein, W. M. P., Zajac, L., Land, S., & Ling, B. An affective booster moderates the relationship between message frame and behavioral intentions. J Behav Med 2012; 4:452-461.
Ferrer, R. A., Shmueli, D., Bergman, H., Harris, P., & Klein, W. Effects of self-affirmation on implementation intentions and the moderating role of affect. Social Psychological and Personality Science 2012; 3:300-307.
Ferrer, R.A., Hall, K.L., Portnoy, D.B., Klein, W.M.P., Han, P., & Ling, B. Relationships among health perceptions vary depending on stage of readiness for colorectal cancer screening. Health Psychol 2011; 30:525-535.
Ferrer, R. A., Fisher, J. D., Buck, R., & Amico, K. R. Pilot test of an emotional education intervention component for sexual risk reduction. Health Psychol 2011; 30:656-660.
Ferrer, R. A., Huedo-Medina, T. B., Pescatello, L. S., Ryan, S., & Johnson, B. T. Exercise interventions for cancer survivors: A meta-analysis of quality of life outcomes. Ann Behav Med 2011; 41:32-47.
