By Judith Schwartzstein, Vice President for Publicity, Sarah Lawrence College 

Jul. 5, 2017:  A Sarah Lawrence College psychology professor has been awarded a Fulbright fellowship to assess the impact of traumatic stress on migrants in Switzerland, many of whom are refugees, compared to the general Swiss population.

Adam Brown, professor of psychology at Sarah Lawrence College, will work with other mental health professionals in Bern, Switzerland, during August to conduct his research. He will also create preliminary interventions that emergency room doctors can use to begin to help to mitigate mental health problems among refugees and asylum seekers.

"We are very proud of the work Dr. Brown has been doing to study an issue of growing concern in the world," said Kanwal Singh, dean of the college. "His special blend of expertise and compassion is essential to furthering our understanding as to the best ways to help alleviate suffering for people fleeing their homelands in search of safety."  

Brown, who specializes in the effects of stress and trauma, will share the results of his work with other professionals at an international symposium on refugees in Bern in November.

Director of the Sarah Lawrence College's Cognition and Emotion Laboratory, Brown is a clinical psychologist whose work focuses on the study of post-traumatic stress disorder ("PTSD") and global mental health.

Over the past ten years, Brown has been working with individuals exposed to traumatic stress in many different contexts, including combat, police encounters, and disaster relief situations. He is now partnering with international organizations to better assess and develop treatments for PTSD and other stress-related mental health issues globally. His recent publications include work on the impact of trauma on human rights advocates.      

He holds a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Oregon and a master's degree and a PhD from the New School for Social Research. He completed his post-doctoral fellowship at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and has received grants from the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Fulbright program, and private foundations.

Pictured here:  Professor Adam Brown.

Photo courtesy Judith Schwartzstein, Vice President for Publicity, Sarah Lawrence College