Bruce Dohrenwend

Last updated
Bruce P. Dohrenwend
Born
Bruce Philip Dohrenwend

(1927-07-26) July 26, 1927 (age 96)
Citizenship American
Alma mater
Known for Post-traumatic stress disorder
Spouse
Awards(with Barbara Dohrenwend) 1980 Award for Distinguished Contributions to Community Psychology and Community Mental Health from Division 27 of the American Psychological Association
Scientific career
Fields Psychiatric epidemiology
Institutions Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health

Bruce Philip Dohrenwend (born July 26, 1927) is an American psychiatric epidemiologist who studies the effects of social adversity on mental health. He is Professor Emeritus of Social Science in Columbia University's Department of Psychiatry and Professor of Epidemiology in the university's Mailman School of Public Health.

Contents

Education

Dohrenwend graduated from Columbia College (New York) in 1950, and the next year earned an M.A. in social psychology at Columbia University. In 1955 he received his Ph.D. from Cornell University in social psychology. Before starting college he served in the United States Navy (1945-1946).

Career

In 1955 Dohrenwend worked under Alexander H. Leighton on the Stirling County Study, which was a community-based study of mental health in a Canadian community. In 1958 he joined the Columbia University faculty and began his research on the Washington Heights Community Health Project. He remained on the active faculty until 2020, when he retired. Before retiring he was the Foundations Fund for Research in Psychiatry Professor, an endowed chair. Dohrenwend also had an appointment as Research Scientist, and later Chief of the Division of Social Psychiatry at the New York State Psychiatric Institute, which is located at the Columbia Medical School campus.

In the early 1960s he and Barbara Snell Dohrenwend, a social and community psychologist who was also his wife, collaborated on a research program that focused on measuring psychopathology and stressful life events in community settings. Their collaboration led to the publication of dozens of articles, two coauthored monographs and two edited books. For their work they were jointly awarded the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Community Psychology and Community Mental Health from division 27 of the American Psychological Association (1980), [1] and the Rema Lapouse Mental Health Epidemiology Award from the American Public Health Association (1981). Dr. Barbara Dohrenwend died in 1982. [2]

Following the Three-Mile Island nuclear reactor meltdown in March 1979, Bruce Dohrenwend was asked to chair a federal task force focused on the effects of stress experienced by workers and residents in the vicinity of the reactor. The group documented that mental stress caused by miscommunication of government and regulatory agencies was a serious consequence of the accident, despite the actual containment of radiation [3]

Dohrenwend continued in the 1980s to advance his program of research that focused on causal mechanisms that explained the onset of psychopathology. He used a quasi-experimental design to show in 1991 that some disorders were more likely to be caused by stress processes, whereas other disorders were more likely to be caused by selection processes consistent with genetic factors. His report of this finding, published in Science, [4] received the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1990 Prize for Behavioral Science Research. [5]

Dohrenwend also developed a model of the genesis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among persons engaged in combat or who were in the vicinity of combat. Dohrenwend was specifically concerned with persons who had no predisposition for psychopathology but who were exposed to combat-related events that were markedly different from usual human experience. [6] [7] [8]

Recognition and awards

In addition to the joint awards with Barbara Snell Dohrenwend, Bruce Dohrenwend was asked to serve as president of the American Psychopathological Association in 1994, [9] and he received the following awards from professional organizations: Hamilton Award (1994) and Zubin Award (2008) from the American Psychopathological Association; [10] Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychiatric Sociology, Society for the Study of Social Problems (1994); Leo G. Reeder Award for a Distinguished Career from the Medical Sociology Section of the American Sociological Association (1999); [11] Harvard Award for Outstanding Contributions and Lifetime Commitment to Psychiatric Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health (2004); In 2007 the Mental Health Section of the American Sociological Association gave Dohrenwend and his coauthors the award for best 2006 publication for the article titled “The Psychological Risks of Vietnam for U.S. Veterans: A Revisit with New Data and Methods,” Science, 2006, 313, 979-982. [12]

Notable Publications

Related Research Articles

A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is also characterized by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual's cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior, often in a social context. Such disturbances may occur as single episodes, may be persistent, or may be relapsing–remitting. There are many different types of mental disorders, with signs and symptoms that vary widely between specific disorders. A mental disorder is one aspect of mental health.

Psychopathology is the study of abnormal cognition, behaviour, and experiences which differs according to social norms and rests upon a number of constructs that are deemed to be the social norm at any particular era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diathesis–stress model</span> Psychological theory

The diathesis-stress model, also known as the vulnerability–stress model, is a psychological theory that attempts to explain a disorder, or its trajectory, as the result of an interaction between a predispositional vulnerability, the diathesis, and stress caused by life experiences. The term diathesis derives from the Greek term (διάθεσις) for a predisposition or sensibility. A diathesis can take the form of genetic, psychological, biological, or situational factors. A large range of differences exists among individuals' vulnerabilities to the development of a disorder.

Normality is a behavior that can be normal for an individual when it is consistent with the most common behavior for that person. Normal is also used to describe individual behavior that conforms to the most common behavior in society. However, normal behavior is often only recognized in contrast to abnormality. In many cases normality is used to make moral judgements, such that normality is seen as good while abnormality is seen as bad, or conversely normality can be seen as boring and uninteresting. Someone being seen as normal or not normal can have social ramifications, such as being included, excluded or stigmatized by wider society.

Child psychopathology refers to the scientific study of mental disorders in children and adolescents. Oppositional defiant disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and autism spectrum disorder are examples of psychopathology that are typically first diagnosed during childhood. Mental health providers who work with children and adolescents are informed by research in developmental psychology, clinical child psychology, and family systems. Lists of child and adult mental disorders can be found in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Edition (ICD-10), published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). In addition, the Diagnostic Classification of Mental Health and Developmental Disorders of Infancy and Early Childhood is used in assessing mental health and developmental disorders in children up to age five.

The American Psychopathological Association (APPA) is an organization "devoted to the scientific investigation of disordered human behavior, and its biological and psychosocial substrates." The association’s primary purpose is running an annual conference on specific topics relevant to psychopathology research. Leading investigators from both the U.S. and abroad are invited to present original papers on topics chosen by the president.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to psychology:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lawrence Kolb</span>

Lawrence Coleman Kolb was an American psychiatrist who was the New York State Commissioner of Mental Hygiene from 1975 to 1978.

Alexander H. Leighton was a sociologist and psychiatrist of dual citizenship. He is best known for his work on the Stirling County (Canada) Study and his contributions to the field of psychiatric epidemiology. Leighton died at the age of 99 at his home in Digby, Nova Scotia.

The classification of mental disorders, also known as psychiatric nosology or psychiatric taxonomy, is central to the practice of psychiatry and other mental health professions.

The Joseph Zubin Award may refer to three different psychology awards named in honor of the psychologist Joseph Zubin.

Rema Lapouse Award is granted to an outstanding scientist in the area of psychiatric epidemiology in recognition of "significant contributions to the scientific understanding of the epidemiology and control of mental disorders. It is sponsored by the Mental Health, Epidemiology, and Applied Public Health Statistics Sections of the American Public Health Association. It was established in 1972 by the American physician Milton Terris in honor of his wife, Dr. Rema Lapouse, who was a founding member of the Mental Health Section.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to abnormal psychology:

In clinical and abnormal psychology, institutionalization or institutional syndrome refers to deficits or disabilities in social and life skills, which develop after a person has spent a long period living in mental hospitals, prisons or other remote institutions. In other words, individuals in institutions may be deprived of independence and of responsibility, to the point that once they return to "outside life" they are often unable to manage many of its demands; it has also been argued that institutionalized individuals become psychologically more prone to mental health problems.

Spiritual crisis is a form of identity crisis where an individual experiences drastic changes to their meaning system typically because of a spontaneous spiritual experience. A spiritual crisis may cause significant disruption in psychological, social, and occupational functioning. Among the spiritual experiences thought to lead to episodes of spiritual crisis or spiritual emergency are psychiatric complications related to existential crisis, mystical experience, near-death experiences, Kundalini syndrome, paranormal experiences, religious ecstasy, or other spiritual practices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Robins</span> American professor

Lee Nelken Robins was an American professor of social science in psychiatry and a leader in psychiatric epidemiology research. She was affiliated with the Washington University in St. Louis for more than 50 years from 1954 until 2007.

Social stress is stress that stems from one's relationships with others and from the social environment in general. Based on the appraisal theory of emotion, stress arises when a person evaluates a situation as personally relevant and perceives that they do not have the resources to cope or handle the specific situation.

Ilan H. Meyer is an American psychiatric epidemiologist, author, professor, and a senior scholar for public policy and sexual orientation law at the Williams Institute of UCLA. He has conducted extensive research on minority identities related to sexual orientation, gender, race and ethnicity, drawing conclusions on the impact of social stresses on their mental health. Meyer was an expert witness for the plaintiffs in Perry v. Schwarzenegger (2010), the federal case that overturned California Proposition 8.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard McNally</span> Professor of psychology

Richard McNally is an American psychologist and director of clinical training at Harvard University's department of psychology. As a clinical psychologist and experimental psycho-pathologist, McNally studies anxiety disorders and related syndromes, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, and complicated grief.

Barbara Snell Dohrenwend was an American epidemiologist and social psychologist. She was born in New York City to Foster D. Snell and Cornelia Tyler Snell. She received a B.A. from Wellesley College in 1947 and a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University in 1954.

References

  1. ↑ Dohrenwend, Bruce P.; Dohrenwend, Barbara Snell; Zubin, Joseph; Levav, I. (April 1981). "The 1980 division 27 award for distinguished contributions to community psychology and community mental health: Barbara Snell Dohrenwend and Bruce P. Dohrenwend". American Journal of Community Psychology. 9 (2): 123–164. doi:10.1007/bf00896364. ISSN   0091-0562.
  2. ↑ "Barbara Dohrenwend, Epidemiologist, Is Dead". The New York Times. 1982-07-02. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  3. ↑ Dohrenwend, Bruce P. (1983). "Psychological Implications of Nuclear Accidents: The Case of Three Mile Island". Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine. 59 (10): 1060–1076..
  4. ↑ Dohrenwend, Bruce P.; Levav, Itzhak; Shrout, Patrick E.; Schwartz, Sharon; Naveh, Guedalia; Link, Bruce G.; Skodol, Andrew E.; Stueve, Ann (1992). "Socioeconomic Status and Psychiatric Disorders: The Causation-Selection Issue". Science. 255 (5047): 946–952.
  5. ↑ AAAS. "AAAS Prize for Behavioral Science Research" . Retrieved October 1, 2023.
  6. ↑ Gardner, Amanda (2007-08-23). "Battle Continues Over Vietnam PTSD Numbers". The Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  7. ↑ Carey, Benedict (2006-08-18). "Study lowers rate of post-Vietnam stress disorder". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
  8. ↑ Dohrenwend, Bruce P.; Yager, Thomas J.; Wall, Melanie M.; Adams, Ben G. (2013). "The Roles of Combat Exposure, Personal Vulnerability and Involvement in Harm to Civilians or Prisoners in Vietnam War-related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder". Clinical Psychological Science. 1 (3): 223–238.
  9. ↑ "Presidents of the American Psychopathological Association" . Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  10. ↑ "American Psychopathological Association Awards" . Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  11. ↑ "American Sociology Association Awards" . Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  12. ↑ "American Sociological Association Awards Mental Health Section Awards" . Retrieved 9 December 2023.


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