Dr. Karen Lincoln Wins the 2022 James Jackson Memorial Award
• Institute Update
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) recently announced the winner of the 2022 James Jackson Memorial Award: Karen D. Lincoln, Ph.D., M.S.W., M.A.
Established in 2021, the NIMH James Jackson Memorial Award honors outstanding researchers who have demonstrated exceptional achievement and leadership in mental health disparities research and excellence in mentorship, influence, and support of trainees. The award is named after the renowned social scientist Dr. James S. Jackson , who was the Daniel Katz Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan, co-director of the Michigan Center for Urban African American Aging Research, and founder of the Program for Research on Black Americans. Dr. Jackson’s research on race, ethnicity, racism, and health had a significant impact on disparities research and minority mental health.
This year’s winner, Dr. Lincoln, is an associate professor in the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work at the University of Southern California (USC), senior scientist at the USC Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging, director of the USC Hartford Academic Center of Excellence in Geriatric Social Work, and founder and chair of the USC Advocates for African American Elders. She is also a social worker and sociologist with expertise in social determinants of health and well-being among Black Americans. Her research focuses broadly on the social, psychosocial, behavioral, biological, and public health factors related to mental health disparities across the lifespan, and she has served as the principal investigator on several NIH-funded and non-federal grants exploring these issues.
Dr. Lincoln is an active public scholar and aging advocate who has published more than 70 articles and book chapters on social stress, aging, and health disparities. She is a Gerontological Society of America Fellow, a Hartford Faculty Scholar, an Encore Public Voices Fellow, and a Next Avenue Influencer in Aging. Most recently, she was named among the top 2% of scientists in the world for 2021 based on citation indicators by Elsevier and Stanford University. Her commitment to the mentorship of trainees, including doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty, has been described as exceptional, and she has contributed to advancing many successful scientific and service careers.
Dr. Lincoln will present a webinar, “The Making of a Black Mental Health Scholar: From Humble Beginnings to the Top 2%,” on Wednesday, July 27, at 12:00 p.m. ET in honor of Minority Mental Health Month. For more information and to register for the webinar, visit the NIMH Office for Disparities Research and Workforce Diversity webinar series page.