Rajal Cohen

She has published over 40 peer-reviewed scientific articles and chapters on the role of cognitive factors in human movement and posture, which have collectively been cited over 2,000 times in peer-reviewed scientific literature. Dr Cohen’s research is dedicated to exploring the interconnectedness of thought, action, and posture. She trains MS and PhD students in the Mind in Movement Lab. 

Dr Cohen completed her Alexander Technique training in 1997 at the Virginia School for Alexander Technique with Daria Okugawa. She received a BA in Psychology from Wesleyan University and an MS and PhD in Psychology (with a minor in Kinesiology) from Penn State University. Her graduate work focused on motor learning and on ways that cognitive limitations cause us to move less optimally than popular theories of motor control propose. She completed a four-year postdoctoral fellowship at Oregon Health & Science University, where she collaborated with leading experts in neurology, physical therapy, and brain imaging on projects related to posture, gait initiation, inhibitory control, Parkinson’s disease, and the neural connections between brain areas associated with so-called ‘higher functions’ and those associated with so-called ‘lower functions’. Her current research focuses on the costs and benefits of different types of postural instruction and biofeedback, in healthy adults as well as those with Parkinson’s disease or musculoskeletal pain.

Since 2016, Dr. Cohen has been the Scientific Consultant for The Poise Project (thepoiseproject.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding innovative ways to bring Alexander Technique principles and tools to people who need it most.