A foremost authority on schizophrenia and a recipient of the National Medal of Science, Dr. Andreasen pioneered the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study mental illness. Her work was among the first to suggest that schizophrenia is linked to abnormal brain development and that a decrease in the size of the brain’s frontal lobe is associated with certain symptoms of the disorder, including impaired cognitive function.

Dr. Andreasen’s research has also provided insight into brain mechanisms underlying language, emotion, and the creative process. She led the first extensive empirical study of creativity and was the first to recognize the association between creativity and bipolar disorder. Among her 15 books is a “brain trilogy” she wrote to educate nonscientists about neuroscience, mental illness and creativity. Her 2005 book, “The Creating Brain: The Neuroscience of Genius,” examines questions of creativity, including the influence of genes and environment.