The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)
Mission. The mission of the BASIS is to strengthen worldwide understanding of addiction and minimize its harmful effects. To work toward this goal, the BASIS provides a forum for the free exchange of information related to addiction, and public access to the latest scientific developments and resources in the field.
Origins. The Division on Addictions (DOA) at the Cambridge Health Alliance, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School is one of the country’s premier centers for the study of addictive behavior. Our mission is to strengthen worldwide understanding of addiction through innovative research, education and information exchange. In the spirit of our mission, the Division has created the BASIS, a virtual institute to advance addiction science, and addiction-related education and clinical services.
Description. In anticipation of the 10th anniversary of The Worldwide Addiction Gambling Education Report (The WAGER), the DOA began a development project that would expand both the types of free science reviews available to the general public and organize other important addiction services within a single web portal. Thus, in addition to the The WAGER, the BASIS offers four new weekly science reviews. The Drinking Report for Addiction Medicine (DRAM) and Addiction Smoking Health Education Service (ASHES) address issues related to alcohol and tobacco use and abuse respectively. Science Threads on Addiction, Substance Use, and Health (STASH) addresses substance use and abuse. In addition, a humanities review called Addiction and the Humanities discusses literature, art, music, and contemporary culture as these relate to addiction. Furthermore, the BASIS will provide access to innovative addiction self-help tools and addiction resources.
Rationale. Too often clinical resources are accessible only to academics or are available at such high prices that they are unaffordable to individuals in-need. Our primary goal is to provide the general public, treatment providers, policy makers, and other interested individuals with free direct access to the latest scientific information and resources on addiction. It is our hope that readers will use the BASIS to better their lives and the lives of others.
The BASIS Staff
Research, Writing, and Resources
- Howard J. Shaffer, Ph.D., C.A.S., Editor-in-Chief
- Debi A. LaPlante, Ph.D., Senior Editor, BASIS
- Richard A. LaBrie, Ed.D.
- Heather Gray, Ph.D., Editor, Addiction and the Humanities
- John H. Kleschinsky, M.P.H., Editor, ASHES
- Sarah E. Nelson, Ph.D., Editor, DRAM
- Evelyn Chao, Ph.D., Editor, STASH
- Ryan J. Martin, Ph.D. Editor, The WAGER
- Julia Braverman, Ph.D.
- Erica Marshall, M.P.H.
- Ingrid R. Maurice
- Tasha Chandler
Web and Technology
- Bill Murphy
Administration and Development
- Melissa Marcarelli
- Chrissy Thurmond
- Tasha Chandler
The BASIS Editorial Board
Mark J. Albanese, M.D.
Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Medical Director, Addictions
Cambridge Health Alliance
Hamilton Beazley, Ph.D., M.B.A.
Scholar-in-Residence
St. Edward's University
Bo J. Bernhard, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Departments of Sociology and Hotel Management
Director of Gambling Research, International Gaming Institute
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Thomas H. Brandon, Ph.D.
Director, Tobacco Research and Intervention Program
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute
Professor, Department of Psychology and Department of Interdisciplinary Oncology
University of South Florida
Kah Sin Cho, M.A., C.A.S.
Regional Coordinator, Country and Regional Support Department
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
Nancy Costikyan, M.S.W., L.I.C.S.W., C.A.S.
Lecturer on Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Linda B. Cottler, Ph.D.
Professor of Epidemiology in Psychiatry
Department of Psychiatry
Washington University School of Medicine
Renee M. Cunningham-Williams, Ph.D., M.P.E., L.C.S.W.
Visiting Associate Professor
George Warren Brown School of Social Work
Washington University
Thomas F. DeFrantz, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Music and Theater Arts
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Valerie DeMarinis, Ph.D.
Consultant in Trans-cultural Psychiatry
Uppsala University
Jeffrey L. Derevensky, Ph.D.
Professor, School of Applied Child Psychology
Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
McGill University
Mark G. Dickerson, Ph.D.
Professor, School of Psychology
University of Western Sydney
Lance M. Dodes, M.D.
Training and Supervising Analyst
Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute
Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
William R. Eadington, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics
Director, Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming
University of Nevada, Reno
Edward J. Federman, Ph.D.
Instructor of Psychiatry
Boston University School of Medicine
Anne M. Fletcher, M.S., R.D., L.D.
Author, Sober for Good, Thin for Life, Weight Loss Confidential (Houghton Mifflin Co.)
Dean Hestermann
Director, Public Affairs
Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc.
Durand F. Jacobs, Ph.D. , A.B.P.P.
Clinical Professor of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Loma Linda University Medical School
Janice F. Kauffman R.N., M.P.H., C.A.S
Director, Substance Abuse treatment Services
North Charles Foundation, Inc.
Director Addiction Psychiatry Service
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Sean Kernan
Photographer
Sean Kernan Studios
Ed Khantzian, M.D.
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
David A. Korn, M.D., C.A.S.
Principal, DAK Strategies
Toronto, Canada
Robert Ladouceur, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Laval University
Henry R. Lesieur, Ph.D.
Department of Psychiatry
Rhode Island Hospital
Michael Levy, Ph.D.
Lecturer on Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Director of Clinical Treatment Services
CAB Health & Recovery Services, Inc.
Cheryl A. Lewin, M.A., C.A.D.C.
President, Gaming Solutions & Associates
G. Alan Marlatt, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Director, Addictive Behaviors Research Center
University of Washington
Lisa M. Najavits, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Director, Trauma Research Program
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center
McLean Hospital
Peter E. Nathan, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Community and Behavioral Health
College of Public Health
University of Iowa
Judy L. Patterson, J.D., M.A.
Senior Vice President and Executive Director
American Gaming Association
Nancy Petry, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychiatry
University of Connecticut School of Medicine
Marc N. Potenza, M.D., Ph.D.
Director, Problem Gambling Clinic
Assistant Professor, Division of Substance Abuse
Department of Psychiatry
Yale University
James O. Prochaska, Ph.D.
Director, Cancer Prevention Research Consortium
Professor of Clinical and Health Psychology
University of Rhode Island
I. Nelson Rose, J.D.
Professor, Whittier Law School
Loreen Rugle, Ph.D.
Clinical Director, Custer Gambling Treatment Program
Kathleen M. Scanlan, M.A.
Executive Director, Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling
Harvey A. Skinner, Ph.D., C.Psych
Professor and Chair, Department of Public Health Sciences
University of Toronto
Peter N. Stearns, Ph.D.
Provost, George Mason University
Elissa R. Weitzman, Sc.D., M.Sc.
Research Scientist, Department of Society, Human Development & Health
Harvard School of Public Health
Charles F. Wellford, Ph.D.
Director, Maryland Justice Analysis Center Professor and Chairperson
Professor, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice
University of Maryland, College Park
Ken C. Winters, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Psychiatry
University of Minnesota
Harold J. Wynne, Ph.D.
Wynne Resources
