Prof Alexander Moreira-Almeida
Professor of Psychiatry
Research Center in Spirituality & Health (NUPES) at Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) School of Medicine
Juiz de Fora, MG, Brazil
Biography
Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Research Center in Spirituality and Health (NUPES), School of Medicine, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil
Chair of the Section on Spirituality of the Latin American Psychiatric Association (APAL)
Former chair of the Sections on Religion, Spirituality and Psychiatry of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA 2014-20) and the Brazilian Psychiatric Association (ABP 2014-21)
Biography
Alexander Moreira-Almeida, MD, PhD is Professor of Psychiatry at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) School of Medicine and Founder and Director of the Research Center in Spirituality and Health, Brazil. Chair of the Section on Spirituality of the Latin American Psychiatric Association (APAL). Founding chair of the section on spirituality of the Brazilian Psychiatric Association (2014-21). Former chair of the Sections on Religion, Spirituality and Psychiatry of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) (2014-21) when coordinated the WPA Position Statement on Spirituality and Religion in Psychiatry. He obtained a medical degree at UFJF and trained in psychiatry and cognitive-behavioral therapy at the Institute of Psychiatry of the University of São Paulo, Brazil, where he also obtained his PhD in Health Sciences. Formerly a postdoctoral fellow in religion and health at Duke University. Author of more than 190 papers published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters that received more than 8,500 citations, h index 47 (Google Scholar). More than 550 presentations at academic meetings, including 151 abroad in 18 countries. More than 400 interviews to lay media. Coordination of TV NUPES, a YouTube channel on science, health and spirituality with more than 300 videos and 1,1 mi views in 100 countries. Editor of the book "Spirituality and Mental Health Across Cultures" (Oxford Univ Press, 2021) and coauthor of "Science of Life After Death" (Springer, 2022). His main research interests involve the exploration of the association between religiosity and health as well as empirical studies of spiritual experiences, especially their implication for the mind-brain problem, as well as the methodology, history and epistemology of this research field.
Honoraria Titles
Major Prizes
Religion, Philosophy & History Interests
History of Science, Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy of Religion
Science & Technology Interests
Medicine & Health, Neuroscience, Psychology
Website
http://www.youtube.com/nupesufjf
Publications
WPA Position Statement on Spirituality and Religion in Psychiatry
2016
Co-authors: Sharma A, van Rensburg BJ, Verhagen PJ, Cook CC.
Volume:15(1)
Pages:87-88
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/wps.20304
Science of Life After Death
Springer 2022
Co-authors: Alexander Moreira-Almeida, Marianna de Abreu Costa , Humberto Schubert Coelho
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-06056-4
Spirituality and Mental Health Across Cultures
Oxford University Press 2021
Co-authors: Alexander Moreira-Almeida, Bruno Paz Mosqueiro, and Dinesh Bhugra
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/spirituality-and-mental-health-across-cultures-9780198846833?cc=us&lang=en&#
Methodological Exclusion of the Transcendent? Implications for Theory and Research in Religion, Spirituality and Health.
2023
Co-authors: Moreira-Almeida A, Hood RW Jr.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-023-01896-3
Religion-Adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Review and Description of Techniques
2022
Co-authors: Marianna de Abreu Costa, Alexander Moreira-Almeida
Volume:61(1)
Pages:443-466
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-021-01345-z
Academic studies on claimed past-life memories: A scoping review
2022
Co-authors: Moraes LJ, Barbosa GS, Castro JPGB, Tucker JB, Moreira-Almeida A.
Volume:18(3)
Pages:371-378
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2021.05.006
Guidelines for integrating spirituality into the prevention and treatment of alcohol and other substance use disorders
2023
Co-authors: Rezende-Pinto A, Moreira-Almeida A.
Volume:45(3)
Pages:274-279
https://www.bjp.org.br/details/2352/en-US/guidelines-for-integrating-spirituality-into-the-prevention-and-treatment-of-alcohol-and-other-substance-use-disorders
Evaluation of the Occurrence of Anomalous Information Reception in Messages in an Allegedly Mediumistic Process
2023
Co-authors: Silva J, Mendes CG, Wainstock BC, Gomide M, Moreira-Almeida A.
Volume:19(6)
Pages:785-791
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2023.03.010
An Empirical Investigation of Alleged Mediumistic Writing: A Case Study of Chico Xavier's Letters.
2019
Co-authors: Paraná D, Rocha AC, Freire ES, Lotufo Neto F, Moreira-Almeida A.
Volume:207(6)
Pages:497-504
https://journals.lww.com/jonmd/abstract/2019/06000/an_empirical_investigation_of_alleged_mediumistic.13.aspx
Clinical implications of spirituality to mental health: review of evidence and practical guidelines
2014
Co-authors: Koenig HG, Lucchetti G.
Volume:36(2)
Pages:176-82
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1255
Manifesto for a post-materialist science
2014
Co-authors: Beauregard M, Schwartz GE, Miller L, Dossey L, Schlitz M, Sheldrake R, Tart C.
Volume:10(5)
Pages:272-4
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2014.06.008
Religiosity, mood symptoms, and quality of life in bipolar disorder
2013
Co-authors: Stroppa A,
Volume:15(4)
Pages:385-93
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12069
Neuroimaging during trance state: a contribution to the study of dissociation
2012
Co-authors: Peres JF, Caixeta L, Leao F, Newberg A.
Volume:7(11)
Pages:e49360
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0049360
Differential diagnosis between non-pathological psychotic and spiritual experiences and mental disorders: a contribution from Latin American studies to the ICD-11
2011
Co-authors: Cardeña E.
Volume:33 suppl. 1
Pages:S21-36
http://www.scielo.br/pdf/rbp/v33s1/en_04.pdf
Remarks on the scientific exploration of "anomalous" psychiatric phenomena
2007
Co-authors: Chibeni, S. S.
Volume:34
Pages:8-16
http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0101-60832007000700003&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en
Religiousness and mental health: a review
2006
Co-authors: Neto FL, Koenig HG
Volume:28(3)
Pages:242-50
http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1516-44462006000300018&lng=en&nrm=iso
Retaining the meaning of the words religiousness and spirituality: a commentary on the WHOQOL SRPB group's "a cross-cultural study of spirituality, religion, and personal beliefs as components of qual
2006
Co-authors: Koenig HG
Volume:63(4)
Pages:843-5
