Areas of Research

Faculty from our department lead projects at the interdisciplinary Research Institute on Addictions, focusing on the relationships among alcohol abuse, violence and marital and family processes.

Our faculty work to unravel the complex genetic underpinnings of neurodevelopmental disorders, with a particular focus on Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The African genome displays remarkable diversity, encompassing a wide range of genetic variations that significantly influence not only individual characteristics but also the predisposition to complex disorders such as ADHD. As a result, it is crucial for our research to incorporate ancestrally diverse genetic data, particularly from individuals of African descent, to discover population-specific genetic risk factors.

Complementing our strength in psychosomatic research, our faculty also use the Child and Family Asthma Studies Center to study how family relations impact anxiety, depression and stress-related illness in children and adolescents. The custom-built facility lets us observe and record families as they interact in a comfortable setting, including gathering real-time data on a child’s physiological responses.

Our innovative program Child and Adolescent Psychiatry for Primary Care (CAP-PC) is evaluating a new model for providing child psychiatric consultation to pediatricians. We provide basic didactic training to participating pediatricians in common child psychiatric disorders, including information about their pharmacological treatment. Our faculty and fellows then consult and prescribe where appropriate and offer ongoing consultation if necessary.

We’ve developed Access to Psychiatrists through Intermediate Care (APIC), a program addressing the state’s critical shortage of psychiatrists. We provide a range of intermediate levels of psychiatric care to autism spectrum and developmentally disabled children, adolescents and young adults — as well as to chronically mentally ill adults — while minimizing the use of the emergency room. We track outcomes closely as we implement services, which range from home visits to intensive outpatient treatment.

Faculty in the Division of Forensic Psychiatry study how psychological and neurobiological factors relate to criminal behavior in people with psychiatric illnesses. Based on this research, we seek to inform assessment, treatment, prevention and social policy to mitigate this public health problem.