Research

My research draws on my interdisciplinary training as a philosopher of science and clinical epidemiologist. There are three areas I focus on: empathy in healthcare, evidence-based medicine, and placebo studies. Below is a selection of interesting studies from each area.


See my full list of titles here.

Doctor empathy

Empathic care has been shown to improve patient outcomes as well as practitioner well-being. Trials show that empathic care can reduce: patient pain, depression, anxiety, practitioner burnout, and patient complaints that may lead to legal risk for the practitioner. This is a young, but growing area and I’m interested in the prevalence of empathy being practiced in a clinical setting and how it can be implemented into the heart of all healthcare interactions.
  • Howick, J., Moscrop, A., Mebius, A., Fanshawe, TR., Lewith, G., Bishop, FL., Mistiaen, P., Roberts, NW., Dieninytė, E., Hu, XY., Aveyard, P., Onakpoya, IJ. (2018). Effects of empathic and positive communication in healthcare consultations: a systematic review and meta-analysis The Royal Society of Medicine
  • Mistiaen, P., Van Osch, M., Van Vliet, L., Howick, J., Bishop, FL., Di Blasi, Z., Bensing, J., Van Dulmen, S. (2016). The effect of patient–practitioner communication on pain: a systematic review European Journal of Pain
  • Kang, ES., Di Genova, T., Howick, J., Gottesman, R. (2022). Adding a dose of empathy to healthcare: What can healthcare systems do? Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice

Evidence-based medicine

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has become a required element of clinical practice. Through my work, I raise a critical lens to the overreliance on the evidence agenda, and what constitutes good evidence. I also advocate for evidence to be considered alongside the particular context and professional expertise, to ensure patients receive optimal treatment.

  • Howick, J. (2011). The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine BMJ Books
  • Greenhalgh, T., Howick, J. & Maskrey, N. (2014). Evidence based medicine: a movement in crisis?, British Medical Journal
  • Every-Palmer, S., Howick, J. (2014). How evidence‐based medicine is failing due to biased trials and selective publication, Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice

Placebo studies

My latest book on placebos argues that it is time for the next placebo studies revolution. The first revolution took placebo studies from the fringes to mainstream. Now, we know enough about placebos and nocebos (which are negative placebos) to implement our knowledge to benefit people. Unfortunately, the science of placebos is mostly remaining locked within the walls of academia, and it needs a revolution to escape!

  • Howick, J (2023). The power of placebos: How the science of placebos and nocebos can improve health care. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
  • Howick, J. (2009). Questioning the methodologic superiority of ‘placebo’ over ‘active’ controlled trials The American Journal of Bioethics
  • Evers, AW., Colloca, L., Blease, C., Annoni, M., Atlas, LY., Benedetti, F., Bingel, U., Büchel, C., Carvalho, C., Colagiuri, B., Crum, AJ., Enck, P., Gaab, J., Geers, AL., Howick, J., Jensen, KB., Kirsch, I., Meissner, K., Napadow, V., Peerdeman, KJ., Raz, A., Rief, W., Vase, L., Wager, TD., Wampold, BE., Weimer, K., Wiech, K., Kaptchuk, TJ., Klinger, R., Kelley, JM. (2018). Implications of placebo and nocebo effects for clinical practice: expert consensus Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics
  • Howick, J., Friedemann, C., Tsakok, M., Watson, R., Tsakok, T., Thomas, J., Perera, R., Fleming, S., Heneghan, C. (2013). Are treatments more effective than placebos? A systematic review and meta-analysis PloS One

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