About the Laboratory
Loss and bereavement are an integral part of our life cycle, yet interpersonal loss can be a highly painful process whose impact is life-long. For some, the death of a loved one derails their ability to live their lives to the fullest for many years. Others mourn their loved ones and are able to emerge with renewed strength and life commitment. Understanding the factors that affect adjustment to loss will have dramatic implications for individuals, families, and society.
The University of Haifa has established a new and unique Center to study loss, bereavement and resilience headed by Professor Simon Shimshon Rubin. The Center’s goals are to advance theoretical and applied knowledge in the area of loss, bereavement, and resilience; to train healthcare professionals, researchers, religious leaders and other key personnel; and to take the lead in addressing these issues. The Center is designed to serve as a focal point for teaching, research, advancing best practices in intervention, fostering collaboration among those in the field, and disseminating knowledge to professionals, policy makers, and the bereaved.
The Laboratory
Loss and bereavement are an integral, and unavoidable, part of life. Despite the universality of loss, coping with this experience is painful, difficult, and has lifelong effects. Each person grieves differently and must find their own way to keep on living alongside the pain, longing, and profound changes to life as it was before the loss.
Identifying and studying the factors that support coping and psychological resilience in the wake of loss is especially vital in culturally- and religiouslydiverse -Israel.
In 2010, the University of Haifa established a new and unique center in Israel for the study of loss, bereavement and resilience, headed by Professor Simon Shimshon Rubin , a globally recognized expert in the research and care of loss and bereavement.
In 2019, the center was renamed the International Laboratory for the Study of Loss, Bereavement, and Human Resilience, though its mission remains unchanged: to serve as a center for research and knowledge dedicated to understanding how individuals cope with the death of a loved one, and to examining the psychological and emotional impacts of loss and bereavement over time.
Laboratory Staff
Prof. Simon Shimshon Rubin
Short Bio
Prof. Rubin, Head of the International Laboratory: Clinical psychologist and eminent expert in the treatment and study of bereavement and loss. For nearly 50 years, Prof. Rubin has been active in the field as a researcher, therapist, and theorist. He has conducted and directed studies on bereavement in Israel and abroad, published dozens of articles and four books in the field, served as a bereavement consultant and lecturer for many organizations in Israel and abroad, and held many conferences on the subject. Among his roles, Prof. Rubin served as Chairman of the Zramim Postgraduate Psychotherapy Program at the University of Haifa’s School of Psychological Sciences from 2015 to 2024. In addition to his work in Haifa, he has been Professor of Psychology at the Max Stern Emek Yezreel College since 2017.
Dr. Ruth Malkinson
Short Bio
Dr. Malkinson, Director of Training: Preeminent clinical social worker, couples and family therapist. Dr. Malkinson specializes in the research and treatment of loss and grief from a cognitive-behavioral perspective (the ABC of grieving), and grief in old age.
Prof. Eliezer Witztum
Short Bio
Prof. Eliezer Witztum: Senior psychiatrist and author who served as a full professor at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Prof. Witztum works at the Be’er Sheva Mental Health Center and the Ezrat Nashim Mental Health Center in Jerusalem. He has published over 200 articles and 10 books.
Dr. Ofri Bar-Nadav
Short Bio
Dr. Ofri Bar-Nadav: Clinical psychologist, therapist in private practice in Haifa, lecturer at the University of Haifa, specializing in the treatment of loss. Dr. Bar-Nadav also serves as chief psychologist for the Partners of Fallen IDF Soldiers organization.
Dr. Alexander Manevich
Short Bio
Dr. Alexander Manevich: Clinical psychologist serving as a senior faculty member in the Clinical Psychology of Adulthood and Aging Program at the Ruppin Academic Center. Dr. Manevich also holds the position of Research Fellow in the International Laboratory for the Study of Loss, Bereavement & Human Resilience at the University of Haifa’s School of Psychological Sciences, and serves as an adjunct lecturer in the Department of Psychology at Kinneret Academic College. His research focuses on loss and bereavement in general and non-death losses in particular, as well as trauma, meaning making, and adaptation to changes in life.
Laboratory Affiliates
Shechory-Stahl, Dr. Mor Avneri, Dr. Hend Yassin-Esmael, Prof. Mooli Lahad, Prof. Rivka Yahav.
International Consultants
Prof. Robert A. Neimeyer, Prof. Phyllis R. Silverman (d. 2016).
Current Research Assistants
Noy Goren, Eleanor Eshkar.
