NAMI Ask the Expert: Cognitive Remediation and Employment: The Thinking Skills for Work Program

Susan R. McGurk, PhD, is a Professor in the Departments of Occupational Therapy (primary appointment) and Psychological and Brain Sciences, and the Director of Cognitive Remediation Initiatives at the Center of Psychiatric Rehabilitation at Boston University. She is a clinical psychologist and neuropsychologist whose multi-faceted research program examines the role of cognitive functioning in employment, academic pursuits, and independent living in persons with serious mental illnesses (SMI), and methods and mechanisms of cognitive remediation aimed at improving cognitive abilities and community functioning in this population. Over 20 years ago Dr. McGurk and colleagues developed the Thinking Skills for Work (TSW) program, a comprehensive cognitive remediation intervention designed to enhance cognitive functioning and improve competitive work outcomes in persons receiving supported employment or other vocational rehabilitation services. Her work is supported by the Biobehavioral Research Foundation (formerly NARSAD), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the National Institute for Disability and Independent Living Research and Rehabilitation (NIDILRR), New York State Office of Mental Health, and the Coalition of Voluntary Mental Health Agencies-New York Work Exchange. She has received the Gerard Hogarty Award for Excellence in Schizophrenia Research and was recognized by the National Rehabilitation Association with the Rehabilitation Practitioner of Distinction Award.