Rachel Kornfield

Dr. Rachel Kornfield is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, as well as a core member of the Center for Behavioral Intervention Technologies (CBITs). Her research focuses on health communication, computer-mediated communication, and human-computer interaction, with an emphasis on designing and optimizing digital mental health interventions. Dr. Kornfield completed a NIMH-funded postdoctoral fellowship in digital mental health, where she investigated the development of automated, personalized mental health support systems using machine learning techniques such as reinforcement learning. Her current work explores how to foster supportive communication in digital environments, particularly through peer interaction, mental health experts, and automated conversational systems like chatbots to enhance the effectiveness of mental health interventions.

• 2020–Present·Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine·Assistant Professor
  • Affiliated with the Department of Preventive Medicine and CBITs, focusing on digital mental health interventions research.
• 2018–2020·Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine·Postdoctoral Research Fellow
  • Engaged in NIMH-funded digital mental health research projects.

• 2014–2018·University of Wisconsin-Madison·PhD
  • Field of study: Communication Science.
• Undergraduate and Master's information not disclosed