Dunbar's life and contributions have been studied and documented by multiple scholars, most notably Robert C. Powell, whose dissertation, "Healing and Wholeness: Helen Flanders Dunbar (1902-1959) and an Extra-Medical Origin of the American Psychosomatic Movement, 1906-1936," is the most comprehensive manuscript on her work. As a result of the extensive scholarship that Dunbar has received, both the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education and the College for Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy give out annual "Helen Flanders Dunbar (1902-1959) Award for Significant Contributions to the Field of Clinical Pastoral Training" in her honor. Powell described Dunbar as a "practical theoretician" and a "woman with a mission".