Robin Barr

A native of Scotland, Barr obtained his undergraduate and doctoral degrees in psychology from the University of Oxford, England. Barr joined the National Institute on Aging in 1987 as a program administrator in the Behavioral and Social Research Program. During that time he helped to develop the Institute's research initiatives on cognitive functioning, human factors, and older drivers. He helped to establish the NIA Roybal Centers and the Institute's ACTIVE initiative examining cognitive interventions to improve functioning in older adults. From 1994–2006, he was Deputy Head of the Division of Extramural Activities and the NIA Training Officer. He was appointed Director of the division in 2007, helping to shape policies toward new and early stage investigators, managing the National Advisory Council on Aging and advising the NIA Director on all extramural activities of the Institute.