Research Professor
Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research
mrosenth@ifh.rutgers.edu, (848) 932-6939
Marsha Rosenthal (Ph.D., Rutgers University; M.P.A, New York University) is a Visiting Assistant Research Professor. Dr. Rosenthal is a medical sociologist who conducts research with vulnerable populations, including underserved groups, the mentally ill and elderly. This work focuses on physician-patient interactions, and the effects of medical organization on health care. Her current research includes three projects addressing patients’ health beliefs as a way of improving self-management of chronic illnesses, addressing cancer, congestive heart failure and diabetes. She is also working with colleagues at Brown University on studies of the organization of medical practices in nursing homes. She has participated in the design, fielding and analysis of seven empirical studies of patients, providers and organizations; utilized both qualitative and quantitative research methods, and developed community-based research sites to study elderly patients with chronic illnesses. Three of these studied how patients and families make attributions and communicate to providers following medical errors and problems with health care (Rosenthal and Schlesinger, 2002). These studies were based on her original theoretical frameworks derived from social psychological attribution models and sociological models of emotion theory and trust. Her paper developing a social theory of blame attribution won the 2002 Matilda White Riley prize from the Sociology Department at Rutgers. Trained as a gerontologist at Brown University (2004-06), she currently serves on the NJ Medicaid Long Term Care Funding Advisory Council.
