Dr. Jeri Fink was born into writing. When she was eight years old, scribbling stories into black & white composition books, she decided that she had to be a writer. She brings that passion wherever she goes - from her clinical practice to snow-mobiling on the Arctic Ocean.

Dr. Fink earned her first master's degree from Columbia University and worked as a free lance journalist. Her articles appeared in over 60 publications, including such prestigious newspapers as The New York Times and The Washington Post and national magazines like Redbook and McCall's. Her investigative writing developed a reporter's "sixth sense" in recognizing the signs of cultural change. This complimented her second masters and doctorate in clinical social work. She is among an elite 2% of social workers with doctorates - individuals skilled in both social work and psychology.

Technology was always a part of her work. Three years after the first PC hit the popular market, Dr. Fink was writing articles on a green-screen computer called the Kaypro. It wasn't long before the sparsely populated "space" called the internet became a part of her life. It was an arduous chore to go online in those days. So Dr. Fink began to ask about internet addresses - were there any books, pamphlets or lists? A young man at Adelphi University Computer Center produced a hastily scrawled list. He was very proud. No one had even heard about the Internet. Dr. Fink decided to compile her own collection which she eventually donated to the reference librarians at the university. They were intrigued by a family therapist who "knew" computers.

That was way back in the early nineties, long before The World Wide Web and AOL. Dr. Fink, also a family therapist in private practice, sees individuals, couples, families, and kids. She taught sociology at the Community College, introducing the "culture of cyberspace." While co-authoring The Psychotherapists' Guide to Managed Care in the 21st Century she became more deeply involved in the electronic environment. Dr. Fink used the internet for information, "met" people from around the world, and joined several virtual communities. This led to new projects such as Who, What, Where: A Community Resource Guide (Bethpage School District), the design and implementation of an online course, Human Behavior in the Electronic Environment (WebEd University), and a series of seminars for clinicians.

Dr. Fink identified a new inquiry she called psychotechnology or the merging of psychology and technology. Psychotechnology Online became the World Wide Web center for these new concepts - later absorbed into the larger website, www.jerifink.com. This led to the professional book, How to Use Computers and Cyberspace in the Clinical Practice of Psychotherapy, the first book in mental health to explore the use of virtual applications in clinical practice. It was followed by the popular nonfiction book, Cyberseduction: Reality in the Age of Psychotechnology and the groundbreaking electronic volume, The New Millennium Dictionary of Electronic Psychology which introduces the first linguistic standards in the field.

Returning to original passion, Dr. Fink published her first novel, Virtual Terror, a psychological thriller about how a therapist opens an online practice and finds herself in deep trouble. Working with Donna Paltrowitz, Dr. Fink began the new young adult mystery-adventure series, Books by Teens. It is a unique project designed to bring the voices, experiences, and insights of teenagers into their own literature. Consequently, the first book in the series, Matthew's Web, was written with sixty teenagers from Mrs. Beth Epstein's seventh grade classes at Lawrence Middle School in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. The book was launched at the end of the school year - with the teens signing books and the community, including local and state dignitaries - joining the celebration.

Dr. Fink is now working on a thriller with a new twist to school violence and the second book in the Books by Teens series. If you would like to be part of Dr. Fink's personal e-mail list where she writes about her travels, her experiences around the world, and her work, click here.

Below are some additional photos, with descriptions, in a small gallery.

		Exploring mines in Colorado.
		Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.
		.Introducing Matthew's Web at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.
		Book signing and workshop at Barnes & Noble, Hollywood, FL.
		Sitting on a panel for psychotherapists at Malice Domestic Mystery Conference, Washington D.C.

Back to top of page.