​Dr. Martin Teicher

Dr. Teicher on the Developing Brain
The primary mission of Martin H. Teicher’s research programs is to improve the life of children, adolescents and adults by exploring the etiology and treatment of psychiatric disorders that arise during development. A major focus of his work is on the effects of childhood traumatic stress and he pioneered studies into the effects of abuse on brain development. Another focus has been on the use of technology to aid in objective psychiatric diagnosis.

Dr Teicher received a Ph.D. in Psychology from The Johns Hopkins University, M.D. from Yale and residency training in Psychiatry at McLean Hospital / Harvard Medical School.

He is the Director of the Developmental Biopsychiatry Research Program at McLean Hospital and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard.

Dr Teicher has served on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology since its inception and he is the child and adolescent psychiatry section editor for BMC Psychiatry.

He has received continuous funding from the National Institute of Health over the last 27 years. He is currently funded by awards from the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse and National Institute on Child Health and Human Development.

Dr Teicher has been a Committee Member of the Neurochemistry and Neuropharmacology Study Section, the Small Business Innovative Research Study Section, and Neuroscience Fellowship Review Committee at the National Institute of Health.

​He is the author of over 200 articles and holds 18 U.S. patents primarily for diagnostic technology and pharmaceutical agents. His articles have been cited more than 16,000 times.

Research surrounding the neurological implications of child abuse

A sampling of various research abstracts completed by Dr. Teicher and colleagues:

The effects of childhood maltreatment on brain structure, function and connectivity.

Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood. 

Type and timing of adverse childhood experiences differentially affect severity of PTSD, dissociative and depressive symptoms in adult inpatients. 

The 'Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology of Exposure' (MACE) scale for the retrospective assessment of abuse and neglect during development.

Sensitive periods of amygdala development: the role of maltreatment in preadolescence.

Effects of childhood sexual abuse on neuropsychological and cognitive function in college women.

Mental health and addictions research

A sampling of research abstracts completed by Dr. Teicher and colleagues:

Type and timing of adverse childhood experiences differentially affect severity of PTSD, dissociative and depressive symptoms in adult inpatients

Type and timing of childhood maltreatment and severity of shutdown dissociation in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. 

Parental verbal affection and verbal aggression in childhood differentially influence psychiatric symptoms and wellbeing in young adulthood.

Commentary: Childhood Abuse: New Insights into its Association with Posttraumatic Stress, Suicidal Ideation, and Aggression. 

Cerebellar lingula size and experiential risk factors associated with high levels of alcohol and drug use in young adults.

Length of time between onset of childhood sexual abuse and emergence of depression in a young adult sample: a retrospective clinical report.

Desperately driven and no brakes: developmental stress exposure and subsequent risk for substance abuse.

Exposure to childhood neglect and physical abuse and developmental trajectories of heavy episodic drinking from early adolescence into young adulthood.