Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell
Research Professor, Global Health
Appointment:
Countries:
Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell
Research Professor, Global Health
Since 2003, Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell, PhD, has developed and tested interventions that integrate mental and physical health. In 2014, she began studying the presence of positive mental health--and not just the absence of mental illness--as a way to prevent health problems and promote well-being.
Rae Jean’s current research questions are:
- What is the relationship between mental health and physical health across time?
- What is the role of positive mental health in initial behavior change, and in sustaining healthy behaviors?
- Can inducing certain positive emotions impact behavior change?
- How can occupational groups of people who are servant-hearted sustain well-being?
To answer these questions, Rae Jean has conducted randomized controlled trials with patients with hepatitis C and alcohol use (Hep ART), and with clergy with obesity and depression, as well as those who are already thriving (Spirited Life). From 2018-2022, she tested several stress symptom reduction and positive mental health promotion interventions (Selah) and identified ways to prevent burnout among medical providers.
Rae Jean’s research focuses on employees who are ‘servant-hearted’ and engaged in work they find sacred, such that they over-exert themselves regularly and experience strong emotions, putting them at risk for mental and physical health problems. She works with:
- US clergy (Clergy Health Initiative)
- Caregivers of orphaned and vulnerable children in Cambodia, India, Kenya, and Ethiopia (Caregiver Flourishing)
- Medical providers, and
- Teachers in Cambodia, Kenya, and Qatar (Teacher Wellbeing Project)
Her book, Faithful and Fractured: Responding to the Clergy Health Crisis, with co-author Jason Byassee was published by Baker Academic in 2018 and captures 10 years of research on the holistic health of clergy.
Projects
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Transforming and Sustaining: Wellbeing Practices for Teachers
Cambodia, Kenya, Qatar
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Longitudinal, mixed-methods study of clergy well-being
United States
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Selah Stress Reduction Intervention Study
United States
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Sabbath Living Evaluation
United States
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Positive mental health in caregivers: A mixed methods study of religion and virtue across four countries and religious traditions
Kenya, Ethiopia, Cambodia, India
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RCT of an Integrated Treatment of Persons with Co-occurring HCV and Alcohol Abuse
United States
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Clergy Health Initiative
United States
Publications
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Johnson SL, Rieder AD, Rasmussen JM, Mansoor M, Quick KN, Proeschold-Bell RJ, et al. A Pilot Study of the Coping Together Virtual Family Intervention: Exploring Changes in Family Functioning and Individual Well-Being. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol. 2024 Mar 18;Lee B-HJ, Holleman A, Proeschold-Bell RJ. Stability and shifts in the combined positive and negative mental health of clergy: A longitudinal latent class and latent transition analysis study of united methodist pastors before and after the onset of COVID-19. Social science & medicine (1982). 2024 Mar;344:116651.Puffer ES, Johnson SL, Quick KN, Rieder AD, Mansoor M, Proeschold-Bell RJ, et al. Family Strengthening in the Context of COVID-19: Adapting a Community-Based Intervention from Kenya to the United States. Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research. 2024 Feb;25(2):267–78.Huynh HV, Proeschold-Bell RJ, Sohail MM, Nalianya M, Wafula S, Amanya C, et al. What processes or key components do teachers attribute to their well-being? A cross-cultural qualitative study of teacher well-being in Cambodia, Kenya, and Qatar. Psychology in the Schools. 2023 Dec 1;60(12):4967–87.
See more publications at Scholars@Duke