Pamela Block, PhD

Dr. Block is an Associate Professor in the Occupational Therapy Program, Associate Dean for Research in the School of Health Technology and Management, and Director of the Concentration in Disability Studies for the Ph.D. Program in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. She is a Fellow of the Society for Applied Anthropology and a recent President of the Society for Disability Studies (2010-2011). Dr. Block received her PhD in cultural anthropology from Duke University in 1997. Her dissertation was entitled "Biology, Culture and Cognitive Disability: Twentieth Century Professional Discourse in Brazil and the United States." She researches disability experienc on individual, organizational and community levels, focusing on socio-environment barriers, empowerment/capacity-building, and health promotion. Her qualitative research combines historical analyses with community-based enthnographic and participatory approaches. She has taught in the areas of disability studies, assistive technology, foundations of OT, qualitative research design, human subjects research ethics, and grant writing. She served as PI of a multi-year study funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) entitled "Project Shake It Up! Health Promotion and Capacity Building for persons with Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury and other Neuromuscular Disabilities," (2002-2005), www.projectshakeitup.org.

She has studied multiple marginalization and the intersections of gender, race, poverty, and disability. She currently studies capacity building and health promotion for people with disabilities through participatory intervention research with community non-profit organizations. Recent research, scholarship, and  film projects involve community building and educational transition for youth Multiple Sclerosis http://vimeo.com/10062359.