Rehabilitation and Participation Science
Program in Occupational Therapy
Independent living, aging in place, neurorehabilitation, cognitive rehabilitation, self-management
Dr. Foster's research involves everyday cognitive functioning and its relevance to occupational performance, participation, and well-being among individuals with chronic neurological conditions. She focuses on the development of more effective and comprehensive rehabilitation programs for individuals with neurological disorders and cognitive dysfunction.
Dr. Foster's classes include those related to neuroscience and neurological conditions in the entry-level MSOT and OTD degree programs. Additionally, she directs the RAPS PhD program and mentors OTD and PhD students who work in her laboratory.
2018: PhD in Rehabilitation and Participation Science, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Program in Occupational Therapy
2009: Master of Science in Clinical Investigation (MSCI), Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Clinical Research Training Center postdoctoral program
2008: Postdoctoral fellowship with Tamara Hershey, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
2005: Doctorate in Occupational Therapy (OTD), Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Program in Occupational Therapy
2005: Research internship, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Department of Psychiatry
2005: Clinical internship, Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation, Brain Injury Unit, East Orange, N.J.
2004: Clinical internship, The Rehabilitation Institute of St. Louis (TRISL), St. Louis, Mo.
2003: BA in psychology (major), biology (minor), Washington University in St. Louis
Dr. Foster earned her doctoral degree in occupational therapy in 2005, completed postdoctoral training in clinical neuroscience and cognitive neuropsychology in 2008, and earned a PhD in rehabilitation and participation science in 2018 at Washington University School of Medicine. During her postdoctoral fellowship, she was selected for a multi-disciplinary clinical investigation training program and received her Master of Science in Clinical Investigation (MSCI) in 2009. Dr. Foster's primary research goal is to develop cognitive rehabilitation approaches that improve daily function for individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD). She is passionate about advancing the science of functional cognition and advocating for occupational therapy’s necessary and unique role in addressing this construct across ages, diagnoses, and practice settings. Dr. Foster is also dedicated to improving health equity and reducing health disparities among people with PD and uses community engaged research approaches to improve diversity and representation in PD-related research, clinical care, and community services. Dr. Foster has an extensive portfolio of institution, foundation, and federal funding for her research.
Wood, J., Henderson, W., & Foster, E. R. (2022). Occupational Therapy Practice Guidelines for People With Parkinson’s Disease. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 76(3). https://doi: 10.5014/ajot.2022.763001
Kang, E., Friz, D., Lipsey, K., & Foster, E. R. (2022). Empowerment in people with Parkinson’s disease: A scoping review and qualitative interview study. Patient Education and Counseling. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2022.06.003
Foster, E. R., Carson, L., Jonas, J., Kang, E., Doty, T., & Toglia, J. (2022). The Weekly Calendar Planning Activity to Assess Functional Cognition in Parkinson Disease. OTJR: Occupation, Participation and Health, 15394492221104075. https://doi: 10.1177/15394492221104075
Kang, E., & Foster, E. R. (2022). Use of Implementation Mapping With Community-Based Participatory Research: Development of Implementation Strategies of a New Goal Setting and Goal Management Intervention System. Frontiers in Public Health, 10. https://doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.834473
Kang, E., Jethani, P., & Foster, E. R. (2022). Person-centered goal setting is feasible in people with Parkinson’s disease who have subjective cognitive decline: a mixed methods study. Disability and rehabilitation, 1-8. https://doi: 10.1080/09638288.2022.2025930
Myers, P. S., O'Donnell, J. L., Jackson, J. J., Lessov-Schlaggar, C. N., Miller, R. L., Foster, E. R., ... & Campbell, M. C. (2022). Proteinopathy and Longitudinal Cognitive Decline in Parkinson Disease. Neurology. https://doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000200344
Foster, E. R., & Doty, T. (2021). Cognitive correlates of instrumental activities of daily living performance in Parkinson disease without dementia. Archives of Rehabilitation Research and Clinical Translation, 3(3), 100138.
Davis, A., Wolf, T.J., Foster, E.R. (2019). Complex Task Performance Assessment (CTPA) and functional cognition in people with Parkinson's disease. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 73, 7305205060. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2019.031492
Foster, E. R., Black, K. J., Antenor-Dorsey, J. A. V., Perlmutter, J. S., & Hershey, T. (2008). Motor asymmetry and substantia nigra volume are related to spatial delayed response performance in Parkinson disease. Brain and cognition, 67(1), 1-10.
Foster, E. R., McDaniel, M. A., Repovš, G., & Hershey, T. (2009). Prospective memory in Parkinson disease across laboratory and self-reported everyday performance. Neuropsychology, 23(3), 347.
Foster, E. R., Campbell, M. C., Burack, M. A., Hartlein, J., Flores, H. P., Cairns, N. J., ... & Perlmutter, J. S. (2010). Amyloid imaging of Lewy body‐associated disorders. Movement Disorders, 25(15), 2516-2523.
Foster, E. R., & Hershey, T. (2011). Everyday executive function is associated with activity participation in Parkinson disease without dementia. OTJR: occupation, participation and health, 31(1_suppl), S16-S22.
Foster, E.R., Cunnane, K.B., Edwards, D.F., Morrison, M.T., Ewald, G.A., Geltman, E.M., & Zazulia, A.R.(2011). Executive dysfunction and depressive symptoms are associated with reduced participation for individuals with severe congestive heart failure. American Journal of Occupational Therapy. 2011;65(3):306-313. PMC3155250.
Nguyen, C., Foster, E. R., Paciorkowski, A. R., Viehoever, A., Considine, C., Bondurant, A., ... & Washington University Wolfram Study Group. (2012). Reliability and validity of the wolfram unified rating scale (WURS). Orphanet journal of rare diseases, 7, 1-8.
Foster, E. R., Golden, L., Duncan, R. P., & Earhart, G. M. (2013). Community-based Argentine tango dance program is associated with increased activity participation among individuals with Parkinson's disease. Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation, 94(2), 240-249.
Foster, E. R., Rose, N. S., McDaniel, M. A., & Rendell, P. G. (2013). Prospective memory in Parkinson disease during a virtual week: effects of both prospective and retrospective demands. Neuropsychology, 27(2), 170.
Foster, E. R., Bedekar, M., & Tickle-Degnen, L. (2014). Systematic review of the effectiveness of occupational therapy–related interventions for people with Parkinson’s disease. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 68(1), 39-49.
Foster, E. R. (2014). Instrumental activities of daily living performance among people with Parkinson’s disease without dementia. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 68(3), 353-362.
Foley KT, Corcoran MA, Foster ER, Savre JM, Morrison MT. Neurorehabilitation of the client with primary degenerative dementia: Introduction to dementia. In Corcoran MA, editor. Neurorehabilitation Self-Paced Clinical Course Series. Bethesda, MD: American Occupational Therapy Association; 2006.
Foster ER, Perlmutter M, Baum CM. Evaluating occupational performance in older adults. In Coppola S, Elliott SJ, Toto PE, eds. Strategies to advance gerontology excellence: Promoting best practice in occupational therapy. Bethesda, MD: AOTA Press; 2008:349-82.
Baum CM, Foster ER, Wolf T. Addressing performance and participation in occupational therapy: The importance of cognition. British Journal of Occupational Therapy. 2009;72(4):143.
Connor LT, Wolf TJ, Foster ER, Hildebrand M, Baum CM. Participation and engagement in occupation in adults with disabilities. In Pierce D, ed. Occupational Science for Occupational Therapy. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Inc. 2013.
Foster ER. From the Desk of the Guest Editor—Themes from the special issue on neurodegenerative diseases: What have we learned, and where can we go from here? American Journal of Occupational Therapy. 2014;68(1):6-8. doi: 10.5014/ajot.2014.009910. PMC4413459.
Umanath S, Toglia J, Anderson F, Foster, E, & McDaniel, MA. Prospective memory training. In Strobach T & Karbach J, eds. Cognitive Training: An Overview of Features and Applications, 2nd Edition. Switzerland: Springer. 2021.
Toglia J, Foster ER. The Multicontext Approach to Cognitive Rehabilitation: A Metacognitive Strategy Intervention to Optimize Functional Cognition. Columbus, OH: Gatekeeper Press. 2021.Toglia J, Foster ER. The Multicontext Approach for Cognitive Rehabilitation. In Ikiugu MN, Taff SD, Kantartzis S & Pollard N, eds. Occupational Therapy Theories, Concepts and Models. Routledge. 2025.
2025: Roster of Fellows Award, American Occupational Therapy Association: "Advancing science and practice supporting functional cognition."
2024: Dean’s Impact Award, Washington University School of Medicine
2021: American Occupational Therapy Association Service Commendation
2020: American Journal of Occupational Therapy Reviewer Award
Foster, Erin, PhD, OTD, OTR/L, FAOTA
Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy, Neurology and Psychiatry
Director of Graduate Studies for the RAPS PhD Program
Phone: 314-286-1638
Fax: 314-286-0631
[email protected]
Cognitive and Occupational Performance Laboratory
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