Rebecca K. Papas

Associate Research Scientist
Section of General Internal Medicine

Rebecca K. Papas is a licensed clinical psychologist and an Associate Research Scientist in the Department of Medicine at the Yale University School of Medicine. Her research interests include adapting empirically based interventions to reduce risk behaviors (e.g., alcohol abuse, risky sex) in resource-limited settings to facilitate primary and secondary HIV/AIDS prevention and to improve health. She is the PI of the Kenya Health Behavior Study (R21AA016884), a feasibility study and stage 1 randomized clinical trial of cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) to reduce alcohol abuse among HIV-infected Kenyan patients. For this project, she has adapted a CBT protocol to Kenyan culture and the Kiswahili language, and trained Kenya lay individuals to deliver CBT. Currently, the small randomized clinical trial comparing the CBT to an existing HIV support group is ongoing. In the U.S., she is the director of the behavioral intervention workgroup for the Veterans Aging Cohort Study (PI: Amy Justice, MD, PhD), a clinical longitudinal study of HIV and alcohol among 7,000 veterans, half of whom are HIV-infected, and their matched controls. The development of multimodal interventions targeting substance abuse and medication adherence among veterans is ongoing. Prior to becoming faculty at Yale, she was a fellow at Yale’s Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS. She received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Florida. Her previous research has examined associations of gender, culture and race with chronic pain. She is a former health journalist and author.

Selected publications

• Papas, R.K., Sidle, J.E., Wamalwa, E.S., Okumu, T.O., Bryant K.L., Goulet, J.L., Maisto S.A., Braithwaite, R.S., Justice, A.C. (2008). Estimating alcohol content of traditional brew in western Kenya using culturally relevant methods: the case for cost over volume. AIDS and Behavior, Nov 18. [Epub ahead of print].
• Haskell, S.J., Papas, R.K., Heapy A.H., Reid M.C., Kerns R.K. (2008). The Association of Sexual Trauma with Persistent Pain in a Sample of Women Veterans Receiving Primary Care, Pain Medicine, 9(6), 710-7.
• Hoffman, B.H., Papas, R.K., Chatkoff, D., & Kerns, R.K. (2007). A meta-analysis of psychological interventions for chronic low back pain. Health Psychology, 26(1) 1-9.
• Haskell, S.J., Heapy, A.H., Reid, M.C., Papas, R.K., Kerns RK. (2006). The prevalence and age-related characteristics of pain in a sample of women veterans receiving primary care. Journal of Women’s Health,15(7), 864-871.
• Papas, R.K., Logan, H.L., & Tomar, S.L. (2004). Effectiveness of a community-based oral cancer awareness campaign. Cancer Causes and Control, 15(2), 121-131.
• Riley, III, J.L., Wade, J.B., Myers, C.D., Sheffield, D., Papas, R.K., & Price, D.D. (2002). Racial/ethnic differences in the experience of chronic pain. Pain, 100, 291-298.
• Robinson, M.E., Riley, III, J.L., Myers, C.D., Papas, R.K., Wise, E.A., Waxenberg, L.W., & Fillingim, R. (2001). Gender role expectations of pain: Relationship to sex differences in pain. Journal of Pain, 2, 252-257.
• Papas, R.K, Robinson, M.E., & Riley, III, J.L. (2001). Perceived spouse responsiveness to chronic pain: Three empirical subgroups. Journal of Pain, 2, 262-269.

Contact

Campus Address
VA Connecticut Healthcare System
950 Campbell Avenue, 11-ACSLG
West Haven, CT 06516

E-mail
rebecca.papas@yale.edu

Office Phone
203-937-5711, ext. 5323

Fax
203-937-4926