About Us

UntitledFor the past ten years, an informal network of researchers at Harvard Medical School has taken a leading role in the field of placebo studies. In July 2011, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center invited these researchers to create the Harvard-wide Program in Placebo Studies and the Therapeutic Encounter (PiPS).

PiPS research is translational, spanning clinical care, neuroscience and molecular biology, as well as interdisciplinary, ranging from psychology to bioethics to anthropology and the history of science. Drawing upon a variety of perspectives allows PiPS researchers to reduce the biases inherent in any single method or theory and creates opportunities for insights that transcend traditional academic boundaries.

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