Manisha Nagpal

Manisha Nagpal received her Master's in Clinical Psychology from Christ University in India. She later worked with Dharma Life Sciences LLC to develop a mobile application + tele counseling program for employees and students in India. She then received her PhD in educational psychology from The Ohio State University, USA. She has developed, worked, and published on different educational approaches to enhancing child and adolescent wellbeing during and after her PhD program. These approaches include dialogic teaching and learning specifically through collaborative small group discussions; designing a technology enhanced curriculum for a digital civic learning program with culturally responsive teaching practices, and contemplative practices such as mindfulness and yoga to further adolescents’ social emotional outcomes and mental health.

At Duquesne, she currently runs a “Mind Body Lab” with doctoral and undergraduate student members, with an aim to further our understanding of the role of embodied practices in learning, development and healing. This includes understanding the role of mind-body approaches on the lived experience of those with psychological disorders. Her lab also consistently partners with community organizations in and around Pittsburgh to provide and evaluate mindfulness and yoga programs for at-risk youth.

She has authored and co-authored several research articles and book chapters in the area of social emotional wellbeing, with more under review. She has presented her work at several prestigious local and international conferences including the American Education Research Association Convention (AERA) and American Psychological Association (APA).  Her research has been supported by internal and external grants, with several paper, poster and travel awards. 

• PhD Educational Psychology
  The Ohio State University, Ohio
• MS, Clinical Psychology
  Christ University, Bangalore, India
• BA, Psychology
  Christ University, Bagalore, India

• Social emotional learning
• Adolescent wellbeing
• The experience and impacts of contemplative practices
• Mixed methods research