Steven M. Silverstein, Ph.D.

Professional Background

Dr. Steven Silverstein is a Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Ophthalmology at the University of Rochester Medical Center and a member of the Center for Visual Science. He is also the George L. Engel Professor of Psychosocial Medicine, the Associate Chair for Research in Psychiatry, and the Director of the Center for Retina and Brain. He is the former President of the Society for Research in Psychopathology (2017) and the former Chair of the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on Serious Mental Illness (2007-2009). Dr. Silverstein received his Ph.D. in Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1989 and completed his internship and fellowship at Cornell Medical College from 1988-1990. His research interests are in: 1) risk factors for serious mental illness and treatment of first-episode psychosis; 2) retinal, perceptual (visual), and cognitive changes in people with schizophrenia, and rehabilitation of those impairments; 3) retinal biomarkers of changes in brain and cognitive functioning in other conditions affecting the brain (e.g., heart failure, cerebral small-vessel disease, sports-related concussion); and 4) mental health issues related to vision loss, and their treatment; He has over 270 publications related to schizophrenia and these other issues. Dr. Silverstein has had continuous grant support since 1991 and is currently principal investigator on several NIH-, industry-, and foundation-funded grants. He has received many awards for his research, clinical, and teaching activities, including the United States Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association’s Armin Loeb Award for research in psychiatric rehabilitation (2008), the New Jersey Psychological Association’s Distinguished Researcher Award (2009), the American Psychological Foundation’s Alexander Gralnick Research Investigator Prize (2010), the Norman H. Edelman Clinical Science Mentorship Award from Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (2010), and the Trailblazer Award from the Schizophrenia Special Interest Group of the Association for Advancement in Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (2016). He has also mentored several generations of clinicians and researchers who have gone on to successful careers in the area of mental health conditions and their treatment.