Faculty

Jessica C Levenson, PhD

Jessica C Levenson, PhD

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Clinical and Translational Science

Contact Details

3811 O'Hara St.
Pittsburgh
 
PA
 
15213
Email
Website
Sleep and Chronobiology Center
Child and Adolescent Bipolar Spectrum Services

Education & Training

PhD
Clinical Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences
MS
Clinical Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences
Clinical Psychology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine
Translational Research Training in Sleep Medicine, University of Pittsburgh

Research Interests

Sleep interventions; Sleep and mood; Implementation
Selected Research Publications & Products
  1. Levenson, J.C., Miller, E., Hafer, B., Reidell, M.F., Buysse, D.J., Franzen, P.L. (2016). Pilot study of a sleep health promotion program among college students. Sleep Health, 2(2), 167-174. PMID: 27525300, PMCID: PMC4978431
  2. Levenson, J.C., Soehner, A., Rooks, B.T., Merranko, J., Goldstein, T.R., Axelson, D.A., Goldstein, B.I., Brent, D.A., Diler, R., Hafeman, D., Hickey, M.B., Monk, K., Sakolsky, D., Kupfer, D.J., Birmaher, B. (2017). Sleep phenotypes among offspring of bipolar parents and community controls: a latent transition analysis and association with conversion to bipolar disorder. Journal of Affective Disorders, 215, 30-36. PMID: 28315578 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2017.03.011
  3. Levenson, J.C., Rollman, B.L., Ritterband, L., Strollo, P.J., Smith, K.J., Yabes, J.G., Moore, C.G., Harvey, A.G., Buysse, D.J. (2017). Hypertension with Unsatisfactory Sleep Health (HUSH): Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. Trials, 18(1). PMID: 28587609 PMCID: PMC5461741
  4. Levenson, J.C., Shensa, A., Sidani, J.E., Colditz, J.B., Primack, B.A. (Accepted). Social Media Use before Bed and Sleep Disturbance among Young Adults in the United States: A Nationally-Representative Study. SLEEP.
  5. Levenson, J.C., Kay, D.B., Buysse, D.J. (2015). The pathophysiology of insomnia. CHEST. 147, 4, 1179-1192. PMID: 25846534 PMCID: PMC4388122

Clinical Interests

Behavioral sleep medicine; Mood disorders, particularly bipolar disorder
Selected Clinical Publications & Products
  1. Frank, E., & Levenson, J.C. (2010). Interpersonal Psychotherapy. American Psychological Association.
  2. Swartz, H.A., Levenson, J.C., & Frank, E. (2012). Psychotherapy for bipolar II disorder: the role of interpersonal and social rhythm therapy. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 43(2), 145-153.*
  3. Frank, E., Ritchey, F.C., & Levenson, J.C. (2014). Is Interpersonal Psychotherapy infinitely adaptable? A compendium of the multiple modifications of IPT. American Journal of Psychotherapy. PMID: 26453344 PMCID: PMC4602162

Education Interests

Research mentorship; Training clinical psychology interns; Medical student education

Biological Psychiatry and Journal of Affective Disorders Research in Mood and/or Bipolar Disorders in Adolescence

Biological Psychiatry and Journal of Affective Disorders Research on Adolescent Mental Health

New research from Pitt Psychiatry investigators provides insight into the development of anxiety, depression, and/or bipolar in adolescence. A Biological Psychiatry study examines the association between trauma exposure, reward neural circuitry function, and affective and anxiety disorders. In the Journal of Affective Disorders, investigators study whether child maltreatment and cognitive function influence the...

New Health Disparities Research: Sleep Among Gender Minority Adolescents

Levenson et al. SLEEP 2021

Many adolescents experience poor or insufficient sleep. However, research suggests that stigmatized youth, including those who identify as racial, gender, and/or sexual minorities, may experience even poorer sleep than those who do not experience stigma. Poor sleep quality is associated with mental health issues that are faced disproportionately by transgender or by gender minority adolescents (defined here as...

Diverse Scientists Worldwide Join the Inaugural Summer SWIM, a Virtual Sleep & Circadian Science Workshop

Diverse Scientists Welcomed at Summer Swim Sleep Workshop

In August 2020, 74 scientists from five continents joined the Department of Psychiatry’s virtual Summer SWIM (Sleep and Circadian Workshop on Indispensable Methods), led by Martica Hall, PhD (Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology and Clinical and Translational Science), and Daniel Buysse, MD (UPMC Professor of Sleep Medicine (Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science), of the University of...

Pitt Psychiatry Awarded $14.8M National Institute on Drug Abuse Center Grant Focused on the Role of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms in Substance Abuse

NIDA Center Grant

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has awarded Pitt Psychiatry a Center of Excellence (P50) grant to fund the Center for Adolescent Reward, Rhythms and Sleep (CARRS). The CARRS Center will be led by Colleen McClung, PhD (Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science) and Daniel Buysse, MD (UPMC Professor of Sleep Medicine and Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science)...

Now in Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry: Sleep Disturbances & Increasing Psychiatric Symptoms in High-Risk Youth

Dr. Adriane Soehner

Major psychiatric disorders often arise during childhood and adolescence, especially among children whose parents have a psychiatric illness. Sleep patterns also shift substantially during the transition from childhood to adolescence. Sleep disturbances, often associated with most forms of psychopathology, have been identified as a promising behavioral intervention target to help treat young people with psychiatric...