As a community psychologist, I seek to improve access to quality of life and to care among diverse, medically underserved patients, families and communities. My research focuses on how community-academic partnerships can reduce barriers and improve standard of care. 

My colleagues and I have conducted several projects to promote evidence-based clinical practice through collaborative research.  Some examples include:

§         Our Queens Library HealthLink Project, which used community organizing to provide cancer education to diverse, underserved communities;

§         Our ACCESS Project, which  worked with community organizations to promote breast health awareness and mammography screening among medically underserved women;   

§         Our Family Access to Care Study, which joined frontline providers and health researchers in providing mental health interventions for families affected by HIV/AIDS; and

§         A series of studies -- for which I also am principal investigator -- examines the quality of life of patients living with HIV/AIDS, bladder cancer and prostate cancer.

Our collaborative research with community organizations and health providers led to new research designs and assessment methodology to promote evidence-based interventions in public health.  For example, the Quality of Life Appraisal Model accounts for differences in the ways that health states are evaluated across people and over time.  More recently, we have established Comprehensive Dynamic Trial designs to describe multi-level interventions in community-based, participatory research.

Selected Peer-Reviewed Papers

Perocchia RS, Rapkin B, Hodorowski JK, Davis NL, McFarlane AR, Carpenter R. Raising awareness of on-line cancer information: Helping providers empower patients.  J Health Communication, 2005; 10, 1-16.

Goytia EJ, Rapkin B, Weiss ES, Golub D, Guzman V, O’Connor M, New York Health Literacy Task Force.  Readiness and capacity of librarians in public libraries to implement a breast cancer outreach and screening campaign in medically underserved communities. Cancer, Culture and Literacy Supplement, Cancer Control, November 2005: 13-20.

Lounsbury DW, Rapkin BD, Marini L, Jansky EJ,  Massie MJ.  The community barometer: A breast heath needs assessment tool for community-based organization.  Health Education Behavior, October 2006: 33(5).

Rapkin BD, Massie MJ, Jansky EJ, Lounsbury DW, Murphy PD, Powell S. Developing a partnership model for cancer screening with community-based organizations:  The ACCESS Breast Cancer Education and Outreach Project.  American Journal of Community Psychology, October 2006; 38(3/4): 153-164.

Lounsbury DW, Reynolds TC, Rapkin BD, Robson ME, Ostroff J. Protecting the privacy of third-party information:  Recommendations for social and behavioral health researchers.  Social Science & Medicine, January 2007; 64(1):213-22. 

Rapkin B, Weiss E, Chhabra R, Ryniker L, Patel S, Carness J, Adsuar R, Kahalas W, DeLeMarter C, Feldman I, DeLorenzo J, Tanner E.  Beyond satisfaction: Using the Dynamics of Care assessment to better understand patients’ experiences in care.  Health & Quality of Life Outcomes, March 2008. Electronic version http://www.hqlo.com/conent/6/1/20. 

Chhabra R, Springer C, Rapkin B, Merchant Y.  Differences among male/female adolescents participating in a School-Based Teenage Program (STEP) focusing on HIV prevention in India.  Ethnicity & Disease, 2008 Vol. 18, No. 2 Supplement 2, pp. 123-127.

Bloem EF, van Zuuren FJ, Koeneman MA, Rapkin BD, Visser, MRM, Koning CCE, Sprangers MAG.  Clairifying quality of life assessment:  do theoretical models capture the underlying cognitive processes?  Quality of Life Research, Published online, August 2008.  Electronic version http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11136-008-9380-z

Patel S, Weiss E, Chhabra R, Ryniker L, Adsuar R, Carness J, Kahalas W, DeLaMarter C, Feldman I, Delorenzo J, Tanner E, Rapkin B. The events in care screening questionnaire (ECSQ): a new tool to identify needs and concerns of people with HIV/AIDS.  AIDS Patient Care & STDs, November 2008; 22:381-393. 

Rapkin BD  Considering the application of the trait/state distinction for response shift research: continuing the conversation.  J. Clin Epidemiol.  2009 62:1124-1125.

Li Y, Rapkin B. Classification and regression tree uncovered hierarchy of psychosocial determinants underlying quality-of-life response shift in HIV/AIDS. J. Clin Epidemiol. 2009 62:1138-47.

Goytia EJ, Lounsbury DW, McCabe MS, Weiss ES, Newcomer M, Nelson DJ, Brennessel D, Rapkin BD, Kemeny MM.  Establishing a general medical outpatient clinic for cancer survivors in a public city hospital setting.  J. Gen. Intern. Med. 2:S451-455, 2009.

Powell T, Rapkin BD, Weiss ES. Participating in biomedical research. JAMA. 2009 25:302(20):2201.

Taminiau-Bloem EF, van Zuuren FJ, Koeneman MA, Rapkin BD, Visser MR, Koning CC, Sprangers MA. A 'short walk' is longer before radiotherapy than afterwards: a qualitative study questioning the baseline and follow-up design.  Health Qual Life Outcomes 2010, Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2010 16: 8-69.

Floyd T, Patel S, Weiss E, Zaid-Muhammad S; Lounsbury D; Rapkin B. Beliefs about participating in research among a sample of minority persons living with HIV/AIDS in New York City. AIDS patient care and STDs 2010 24(6):373-80.

Reich WA; Lounsbury DW; Zaid-Muhammad S; Rapkin B. Forms of social support and their relationships to mental health in HIV-positive persons. Psychology, health & medicine 2010 15(2):135-45.

Hunter J. Lounsbury DW. Rapkin BD. & Remein R. 2010 Navigating ethical challenges incollaborative community research. Global Journal of Community Psychology. [on-line http://www.gjcpp.org/en/].

Morganstern BA, Bochner B, Dalbagni G, Shabsigh A, and Rapkin B.  The psychological context of quality of life: a psychometric analysis of a novel idiographic measure of bladder cancer patients' personal goals and concerns prior to surgery.  Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 9:10, 2011.

Rapkin BD. Erb-Downward J. Weiss E. Stevenson A. Michel T. Sabino E. Lounsbury DW, O’Connor M. Garcia-Febo L. Kemeny MM. Golub D. Weber D. (Submitted for review). Queens Library HealthLink: A partnership model to reduce cancer disparities through public libraries. Health Promotion Practice.

Schwartz C E and Rapkin B. Understanding appraisal processes underlying the then test: a mixed methods investigation.Qual Life Res., 2011.

Swartz RJ, Schwartz, C, BaschE, CaiL, Fairclough D L, McLeod L, Mendoza T, Rapkin, B. The king's foot of patient-reported outcomes: current practices and new developments for the measurement of change Qual Life Res 20(8): 1159-1167, 2011.

Trickett EJ, Beehler S, Deutsch C, Green LW,Hawe P, McLeroy K,Miller RL, Rapkin BD, Schensul JJ, Schulz AJ,Trimble JE Advancing the science of community-level interventions. Am J Public Health 101(8): 1410-1419, 2011.

Schwartz CE, Snook E, Quaranto BR, Benedict RH, Rapkin BD, Vollmer T Cognitive Reserve and Appraisal in Multiple Sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. MS and Related Disorders, 2:36-44, 2013

Rapkin B, Weiss E, Lounsbury D, Thompson H, Goodman R, Schechter C, Merzel C, Shelton R, Blank AE, Erb-Downward J, Williams A, Valera P, Padgett D Using the Interactive Systems Framework to Support a Quality Improvement Approach to Dissemination of Evidence-Based Strategies to Promote Early Detection of Breast Cancer:  Planning a Comprehensive Dynamic Trial, American Journal of Community Psychology, PMCID: 22618023, 2012.

Schwartz CE, Rapkin BD Understanding Appraisal Processes Underlying the Thentest: A Mixed Methods Investigation. Quality of Life Research, DOI 10.1007/s11136-011-0023-4, 2012.

Weiss, ES, Stevenson, AJ, Erb-Downward J, Combs S, Sabino EE, Michel TA, Kemeny MM, Ackley-Kazdal T, O’Connor M, Rapkin B Sustaining CBPR Partnerships to Address Health Disparities in Times of Economic Instability, J. of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 23:1527-1535, 2012.

Nevadunsky N, Rapkin B, Kaur G, Goldberg G Idiographic Assessment of Quality of life of Women with High-Risk Gynecologic Malignancies – Pilot Study of Symptom Burden Assessment.  Supportive Cancer Car, 20: S168, 2012.

Nevadunsky N, Brodt Z, Eti S, Rapkin B, Rivera E, Selwyn P, Goldberg G Differences in the use of palliative medicine consultation in gynecologic malignancies in an urban hospital system. Gynecologic Oncology, 125: Supplement 1, S117, 2012.

Nevadunsky N, Eti S, Rivera E, Harris K, Chudnoff S, Selwyn P, Rapkin B, Goldberg G Palliative medicine educational initiative for trainees in gynecologic oncology. Gynecologic Oncology, 125: Supplement 1, S119-S120, 2012.

Schwartz CE, Snook E, Quaranto BR, Benedict RB, Rapkin BD, Vollmer T Cognitive Reserve and Appraisal in Multiple Sclerosis. MS and Related Disorders, 2:36-44, 2013.

Steinerman JR, Lipton RB, Rapkin BD, Quaranto BR, Schwartz CE Factors associated with openness to research participation in an aging community: the importance of technophilia and social cohesion, 11:504-512, Gerontechnology, 2013. 

Schwartz CE, Quaranto, BR, Rapkin BD, Vollmer T, Sprangers MAG  Fluctuations in appraisal over time in the context of stable versus no-stable health, Quality of Life Research, 2013. DOI: 10.1007/s11136-013-0471-0.

Nevadunsky N,  Kaur G, Spoozak L, Rapkin B, Taylor K, Selwyn P, Goldberg G. Idiographic assessment of quality of life of women with high risk gynecological malignancies. Gynecologic Oncology.  130(1):e146, 2013.

Roy UB, Michel T, Carpenter A, Lounsbury DW, Sabino E, Juro-Stevenson A, Combs S, Jacobs J, Padgett D, Rapkin BD Community-led cancer action councils in Queens, New York: Process Evaluation of an Innovative Partnership with the Queens Library System. Preventing Chronic Disease, 11:E19, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd11.130176, 2014.

Nevadunsky N, Gordon S, Spoozak L, Van Arsdale A, Hou Y, Eti S, Klobocista M, Rapkin B, Goldberg GL The role and timing of palliative medicine consultation for women with gynecologic malignancies: Association with end of life interventions and direct hospital costs, Gynecologic Oncology, 1:3-7, 2014. PMID:24183728.

Ohri N, Rapkin BD, Guha D, Haynes-Lewis H, Guha C, et al. Predictors of radiation therapy noncompliance in an urban academic cancer center. International journal of radiation oncology, biology, physics. 2015; 91(1):232-8.PMID: 25835626

Bochner BH, Dalbagni G, Sjoberg DD, Silberstein J, Keren Paz GE, et al. Comparing Open Radical Cystectomy and Robot-assisted Laparoscopic Radical Cystectomy: A Randomized Clinical Trial. European Urology. 2015; 67(6):1042-50 PMCID: PMC4424172

Anderson CB, Rapkin B, Reaves BC, Sun AJ, Morganstern B, Dalbagni G, Donat M, Herr HW, Laudone VP and Bochner BH  Idiographic quality of life assessment before radical cystectomy.  Psycho-oncology, 2015. DOI: 10.1002/pon.4025.

Redeker NS, Anderson R, Bakken S, Corwin E, Docherty S, Dorsey SG, Heitkemper M, McCloskey DJ, Moore S, Pullen C, Rapkin B, Schiffman R, Waldrop-Valverde D,Grady P. Advancing Symptom Science Through Use of Common Data Elements. J Nurs Scholarsh. 2015 Sep;47(5):379-88. doi: 10.1111/jnu.12155. Epub 2015 Aug 6. PMCID: PMC4618317.

Ohri N, Rapkin BD, Guha C, Kalnicki S and Garg M. Radiotherapy noncompliance and clinical outcomes in an urban academic cancer center. International J of Rad Onc Bio Phys, 2016. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrobp.2016.01.043

Schwartz CE, Li J and Rapkin BD Refining a Web-based goal assessment interview: item reduction based on reliability and predictive validity. Qual Life Res, 2016. DOI 10.1007/s11136-016-1258-x

Schwartz CE, Rapkin BD and Healy BC.  Reserve and Reserve-building activities research: key challenges and future directions.  BMC Neurosci, 2016. 17:62.

Trosman JR, Carlos RC, Simon MA, Madden DL, Gradishar WJ, Benson II AB, Rapkin BD, Weiss ES, Gareen IF, Wagner LI, Khan SA, Bunce MM, Small A, Weldon CB.  Care for a Cancer Patient as a Project: Managing Complex Task Interdependence in Cancer Care Delivery, JOP, doi: 10.1200/JOP.2016.013573, 2016.

Schwartz CE, Finklestein JA and Rapkin BD Appraisal assessment in patient-reported outcome research: Methods for uncovering the personal context and meaning of quality of life, Qual Life Res, 2016. DOI 10.1007/s11136-016-1476-2

Rapkin BD, Weiss E, Lounsbury D, Michel T, Gordon A, Erb-Downward J, Sabino-Laughlin E, Carpenter A, Schwartz CE, Bulone L, Kemeny M. Reducing Disparities in Cancer Screening and Prevention through Community-Based Participatory Research Partnerships with Local Libraries: A Comprehensive Dynamic Trial. Am J Community Psychol. 2017 Sep;60(1-2):145-159. doi: 10.1002/ajcp.12161. Epub 2017 Sep 15. PubMed PMID: 28913882.

Rapkin BD, Garcia I, Michael W, Zhang J and Schwartz CE Distinguishing appraisal and personality influences on quality of life in chronic illness: introducing the quality-of-life appraisal profile version 2.  Qual Life Res DOI 10.1007/s11136-017-1600-y.

Rapkin B, Weiss E, Lounsbury D, Thompson H, Goodman R, Schechter C, Merzel C, Shelton R, Blank AE, Erb-Downward J, Williams A, Valera P, Padgett D. Using the Interactive Systems Framework to Support a Quality Improvement Approach to Dissemination of Evidence-Based Strategies to Promote Early Detection of Breast Cancer:  Planning a Comprehensive Dynamic Trial,  American Journal of Community Psycholology, 2012 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10464-012-9518-6.

Selected Chapters and Reports

Rapkin BD, Trickett EJ.  Comprehensive dynamic trial designs for behavioral prevention research with communities:  Overcoming inadequacies of the randomized controlled trial paradigm.  In Trickett E and Pequenaut W (eds), Increasing the community impact of HIV prevention interventions.   New York: Oxford University Press, 2005: 249-277. 

Lounsbury DW, Murphy P, Robinson J, Rapkin B. Managing multi-site collaborative research in the community. In Loue S & Pike E (eds). In Case studies in ethics and HIV research. New York: Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2007:184-203.

Jansky EJ, Rapkin BD, Murphy P, Lounsbury DW, Massie MJ. Fitting cancer screening into harm reduction:  Lessons learned from an academic-community partnership. In Schensul, J (ed). Compendium of case studies in community-based collaborative research [Electronic media – dvd]. Hartford, CT: Institute for Community Research [Producer and Distributor]. 2007.

 Kang E, Rapkin BD. Why Tell? Serostatus disclosure and HIV stigma among HIV  seropositive Asians and Pacific Islander men who have sex with men inNew York City. In Loue, S (ed). Health issues confronting minority men who have sex with men. New York: Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2008:197-217.

Rapkin BD Paths for the Future: Using What We’ve Learned to Eliminate Cancer Disparities.  In Cancer Disparities: Causes and Evidence-Based Solutions (R. Elk, H. Landrine, eds) New York: Springer, 497-524, 2011.

Rapkin B and Mellins, C. Promoting Family-Focused Evidenced-Based Practice in Frontline HIV/AIDS Care.  In Family and HIV/AIDS: Cultural and Contextual Issues in Prevention and Treatment (W. Pequegnat and C.C. Bell (eds.) Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 303-328, 2011. 

Rapkin B.  The Role of Community Health Workers in Implementing Community-Oriented Primary and Preventive Services Across the Life Span.  In Procedures in Community-Oriented Health Services (E. Mpofu (ed.) Springer Publishing, 85-114, 2014.

Rapkin BD, Weiss E, Lounsbury D, Michel T, Gordon A, Erb-Downward J, Sabino-Laughlin E, Carpenter A, Schwartz CE, Bulone L and Kemeny M.  Reducing Disparities in Cancer Screening and Prevention through Community‐Based Participatory Research Partnerships with Local Libraries: A Comprehensive Dynamic Trial.  Am J Community Psychol, 60:1-15, 2017.

Rapkin BD, Garcia I, Michael W, Zhang J and Schwartz CE Distinguishing appraisal and personality influences on quality of life in chronic illness: introducing the quality-of-life appraisal profile version 2.  Qual Life Res, 2815-2829, 2017.

Rapkin BD, Garcia I, Michael W, Zhang J and Schwartz CE.  Development of a practical outcome measure to account for individual differences in quality-of-life appraisal: the Brief Appraisal Inventory. Qual Life Res 27: 823-833, 2018

Gressel GM, Dioun SM, Richley M, Lounsbury DW, Rapkin BD, Isani S, Kuo DYS, Novetsky SP. Utilizing the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) to increase referral to ancillary support services for severely symptomatic patients with gynecologic cancer, Gyn Onc, DOI:org/10.1016/j.ygyno.2018.04.028, 2019.

Li Y, Rapkin B, Atkinson TM, Schofield E, Bochner BH  Leveraging latend dirichlet allocation in processing free-text personal goals among patients undergoing bladder cancer surgery, Qual Life Res, 28:6, 1441-1455, 2019.

Blank AE, Weiss ES, Salcedo B, Leach EE, Rapkin BD, , Barsanti F, Meissner P, DeLeon S, Hernandez P, Walker E.  Bronx Community Collaborative Opportunities for Research and Education: Implementation and Evaluation of a Community-Academic Partnership, Progress in Comm Health Partnerships: Research, Education and Action, 13:3, 273-282, 2019.

Rapkin BD, Schwartz CE.  Advancing quality-of-life research by deepening our understanding of response shift: a unifying theory of appraisal, Qual Life Res, 28:10, 2623-2630, 2019

Rapkin BD, Schwartz CE, Garcia I, et al. (2020). Testing New Ways to Measure How Patients Rate Quality of Life. Washington, DC: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). https://doi.org/10.25302/03.2020.ME.130600781, 2020.

 Simon MA, Trosman JR, Rapkin B, Rittner SS, Adetoro E, Kirschner MC, O’Brian CA, Tom LS, Weldon CB  Systematic Patient Navigation Strategies to Scale Breast Cancer Disparity Reduction by Improved Cancer Prevention and Care Delivery Processes. JCO Oncol Pract. doi: 10.1200/JOP.19.00314. Epub June 23, 2020.

Schwartz CE, Stark RB, Rapkin BD Capturing patient experience: does quality-of-life appraisal entail a new class of measurement? J Patient Rep Outcomes, 4:85, doi: 10.1186/s41687-020-00254-1, 2020.