The Department of Psychiatry is a national leader in its field, particularly in its research mission, and recognized as a key driver behind Washington University School of Medicine’s national standing and overall research portfolio. Our research provides valuable insight into psychiatric disorders and contributes to the reliable evaluation of theories, therapies and treatments.

Throughout our department, our faculty are making vital connections between research and clinical care that improve patient care and impact population health. Basic science discoveries are, in many cases, driving government policy (e.g. Tobacco 21, graduated driver’s license).

Areas of expertise

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  1. Alcohol and substance use disorders
  2. Lifespan behavioral disorders, mood disorders, and eating disorders
  3. Personality disorders, schizophrenia, and psychotic disorders
  4. Genetics of neuropsychiatric disorders and dementias
  5. Behavioral health and medication trials
  6. Basic neuroscience, neuroimaging

Outstanding faculty

Our faculty are leading the next level of knowledge in psychiatry. Their incredible breadth and depth of investigation includes research across major areas of genetics, public health and prevention, neuroscience and behavioral medicine.

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Publications

Washington University School of Medicine has consistently been ranked as a top 10 research university with strong funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Our faculty routinely have over 300 publications each year with a total of 413 publications in 2023, 410 of which are indexed in PubMed.

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Multidisciplinary collaboration

Reflecting the multidisciplinary nature of psychiatric research, department members play key leadership roles within Washington University and the School of Medicine, including collaborations with other non-psychiatry groups.

Most notably, our department is home to the Taylor Family Institute, which unites the efforts of faculty members in the departments of psychiatry, anesthesiology, radiology, developmental biology and neurology to identify new and more effective treatments for psychiatric illnesses.

Psychiatry Residency Research Education Program (PRREP)

The Psychiatry Residency Research Education Program (PRREP) seeks to provide early training in research to residents in a way that will enhance their ability to be successful at subsequent stages of their career.

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Training and career development

Over the past 10 years, 90% of our residents, who become postgraduate T32 trainees, remain in academic medicine with 2/3 of them receiving K-level career awards. Current trainees are involved in a large variety of research projects ranging from studies of basic neurobiological mechanisms to clinical research.

Learn more about research career development »