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The Department of Psychiatry Welcomes Research Faculty Member Lilcelia Williams, PhD

Lilcelia Williams, PhD, MBA-HCM

Pitt Psychiatry extends a warm welcome to Lilcelia Williams, PhD, MBA-HCM (Research Instructor in Psychiatry). Dr. Williams received her PhD in Instructional Management and Leadership from the Robert Morris University School of Nursing, Education, and Human Studies, and her MBA in healthcare management from Western Governors University. She conducted postdoctoral research training at the University of Pittsburgh...

From Surviving to Thriving in the Autism Community

Mosaic of Photos from the From Surviving to Thriving Event

The University of Pittsburgh’s National Institute of Mental Health-funded Autism Center of Excellence (ACE) recently hosted “From Surviving to Thriving: Lived Experiences and Practical Tips for the Autism Community,” a special event focused on thriving within the autistic community. From Surviving to Thriving featured speakers with varied connections to autism, with the goal of highlighting how to support positive...

Register Now for the Department of Psychiatry Interventional Psychiatry Showcase

Collage of 2024 Interventional Psychiatry Showcase Photos

Register now for the Department of Psychiatry’s 2nd Annual Interventional Psychiatry Showcase on March 3, 2025! This year’s Showcase will focus on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS). Through presentations, roundtables, and panel discussions, participants will learn about new research using these methods and about their applications for treating a range of...

Nature Neuroscience: Dissociable Control of Motivation and Reinforcement by Distinct Ventral Striatal Dopamine Receptors

Dr. Zachary Freyberg

Dopamine transmission is essential for reward processes including motivation and reinforcement. Motivation is the internal process activating and directing behavior, and reinforcement increases the likelihood of a behavior through stimulus–response and action–outcome associations. The nucleus accumbens medial shell within the striatum serves as a key hub for reward-related behaviors, receiving dopaminergic inputs...

Ann Cohen, PhD, Honored at Human Amyloid Imaging Conference  

Dr. Ann Cohen is Presented with the Christopher Clark Award

Congratulations to Ann Cohen, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry), who received the Human Amyloid Imaging 2025 Conference Christopher Clark Award, honoring the late Christopher Clark, MD, a neurologist and Alzheimer’s disease researcher. The Christopher Clark Award recognizes Dr. Cohen’s outstanding work in the use of positron emission tomography (PET) imaging in the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease prior...

JAMA Psychiatry: Left Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortical Activity During Reward Expectancy and Mania Risk

Drs. Manan Arora and Mary Phillips

Mania/hypomania is characterized by elevated reward sensitivity and goal overvaluation, impulsivity, and sensation seeking, and is the defining symptom of bipolar disorder. However, in individuals without a clear history of mania/hypomania, bipolar disorder is often misdiagnosed as major depressive disorder. Replicable neural markers of mania/hypomania risk are needed for earlier bipolar diagnosis, as well as for...

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