Secondary Faculty

Sydney Bryn Austin

Professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Social and Behavioral Sciences

saustin@hsph.harvard.edu

Other Positions

Interim Co-Chair, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Professor of Pediatrics

Pediatrics-Boston Children's Hospital

Harvard Medical School


Overview

Director, STRIPED

Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School; S. Jean Emans, MD, Endowed Chair in Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital; Research Scientist in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital

Dr. Austin is an award-winning researcher, teacher, and mentor. She is Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School; S. Jean Emans, MD, Endowed Chair in Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital; Research Scientist in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital. She is the Founding Director of the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders: A Public Health Incubator (STRIPED), based at the Harvard Chan School and Boston Children’s Hospital. Her program STRIPED is the first research and training program dedicated to eating disorders prevention based at a school of public health and with a specialization in research-to-policy translation. She was also the Founding Director of the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression Health Equity Research Collaborative (SOGIE), based at the Harvard Chan School and Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Austin is a social epidemiologist and behavioral scientist with a research focus on health inequities, especially those affecting socially and structurally marginalized adolescents, and she has received numerous grants funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health and other government, foundation, and philanthropic funders to support her research. She leads two primary research programs: One focuses on environmental influences on eating disorders risk and public health approaches to primary and secondary prevention of eating disorders with an emphasis on policy translation research and advocacy. The second focuses on determinants of sexual orientation and gender identity disparities in a range of health domains, including disordered weight-related behaviors, substance use, bullying victimization, and other health risk indicators. Dr. Austin is a current Mental Health Policy Fellow with Inseparable, Past President of the Academy for Eating Disorders, and Past President of the Eating Disorders Coalition, the leading community advocacy organization dedicated to U.S. federal policy on eating disorders. She serves on the editorial boards of the International Journal of Eating Disorders and Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention and as a guest editor for two recent special issues of the Journal of Eating Disorders. A unifying goal of her academic career has been to advance innovations in transdisciplinary science applied to eating disorders prevention and the study of health inequities adversely affecting socially and structurally marginalized youth to inform effective policy change. Across her research and teaching initiatives, her aim is to offer mentorship and opportunities that will help the next generation of talented junior scientists excel in their pursuit of health equity for all.

First Place2023
2022 Society for Public Health Education winner in Health Education Technology Innovation category

Top Posters Award 2023
2023 International Conference on Eating Disorders

Top Cited Article Award2023
2023 Wiley Publishing Top Cited Article in International Journal of Eating Disorders

Top Abstract Award 2023
Society for Behavioral Medicine Boston Children’s Hospital Postdoctoral Association Eating Disorder

Dr. Tara McCarthy Award for Excellence in Research Mentoring2022
Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital

Shortlist Honor2022
2022 Digital Education Awards finalist in New Digital Course of the Year category

Senior Disparities Investigator Award2019
AcademyHealth

Community Engagement Award2019
Harvard Chan Student Association, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Article in Top 25 Most Important2017
Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention

Society for Behavioral Medicine Leadership Institute2016
Society for Behavioral Medicine

Best Senior Postdoctoral Mentor Award2016
Boston Children’s Hospital Postdoctoral Association

Lori Irving Award for Excellence in Eating Disorder Prevention2014
National Eating Disorders Association

Prism Award2014
Boston Children’s Hospital LGBT and Friends Committee

Iris F. Litt Visiting Professorship in Adolescent Health Research for 20142013
Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine

Roger L. Nichols Excellence in Teaching Award2011
Harvard School of Public Health

Teaching Citation2009
Harvard School of Public Health

Estherann Grace Teaching Award2009
Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital

Young Mentor Award2008
Harvard Medical School

Healthy Living Research Award2008
National Association for Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders

Finalist, Society for Adolescent Medicine New Investigator Award2004
Society for Adolescent Medicine

Finalist, Society for Adolescent Medicine New Investigator Award2003
Society for Adolescent Medicine

Finalist, Society for Adolescent Medicine New Investigator Award2001
Society for Adolescent Medicine

Harvard School of Public Health Student Recognition Award1999
Harvard School Of Public Health

Public Health Foundation Enterprises Scholarship1998
Other

Harvard School of Public Health Central School Scholarship1996
Harvard School Of Public Health

Uncommon Legacy Foundation Scholarship1995
Other

Maggie Award Finalist, Best News Story, Advocate cover story, contributing editor1992
Other

1992 National Gay and Lesbian Journalists Association Editorial Excellence Award, Advocate cover st 1992
Other

1992 Medill School of Journalism Award for Public Interest Magazine Journalism, Advocate cover stor 1992
Medill School of Journalism

Maggie Award Finalist, Best Signed Editorial, Advocate editorial, author1992
Other

Quill and Dagger Honor Society1988
Cornell University


Bibliography

International consensus on patient-centred outcomes in eating disorders.

Austin A, De Silva U, Ilesanmi C, Likitabhorn T, Miller I, Sousa Fialho MDL, Austin SB, Caldwell B, Chew CSE, Chua SN, Dooley-Hash S, Downs J, El Khazen Hadati C, Herpertz-Dahlmann B, Lampert J, Latzer Y, Machado PPP, Maguire S, Malik M, Moser CM, Myers E, Pastor IR, Russell J, Smolar L, Steiger H, Tan E, Trujillo-Chi Vacuán E, Tseng MM, van Furth EF, Wildes JE, Peat C, Richmond TK.

Lancet Psychiatry. 2023 12. 10(12):966-973. PMID: 37769672

Discovery of 95 PTSD loci provides insight into genetic architecture and neurobiology of trauma and stress-related disorders.

Nievergelt CM, Maihofer AX, Atkinson EG, Chen CY, Choi KW, Coleman JR, Daskalakis NP, Duncan LE, Polimanti R, Aaronson C, Amstadter AB, Andersen SB, Andreassen OA, Arbisi PA, Ashley-Koch AE, Austin SB, Avdibegoviç E, Babic D, Bacanu SA, Baker DG, Batzler A, Beckham JC, Belangero S, Benjet C, Bergner C, Bierer LM, Biernacka JM, Bierut LJ, Bisson JI, Boks MP, Bolger EA, Brandolino A, Breen G, Bressan RA, Bryant RA, Bustamante AC, Bybjerg-Grauholm J, Bækvad-Hansen M, Børglum AD, Børte S, Cahn L, Calabrese JR, Caldas-de-Almeida JM, Chatzinakos C, Cheema S, Clouston SAP, Colodro-Conde L, Coombes BJ, Cruz-Fuentes CS, Dale AM, Dalvie S, Davis LK, Deckert J, Delahanty DL, Dennis MF, deRoon-Cassini T, Desarnaud F, DiPietro CP, Disner SG, Docherty AR, Domschke K, Dyb G, Kulenovic AD, Edenberg HJ, Evans A, Fabbri C, Fani N, Farrer LA, Feder A, Feeny NC, Flory JD, Forbes D, Franz CE, Galea S, Garrett ME, Gelaye B, Gelernter J, Geuze E, Gillespie CF, Goci A, Goleva SB, Gordon SD, Grasser LR, Guindalini C, Haas M, Hagenaars S, Hauser MA, Heath AC, Hemmings SM, Hesselbrock V, Hickie IB, Hogan K, Hougaard DM, Huang H, Huckins LM, Hveem K, Jakovljevic M, Javanbakht A, Jenkins GD, Johnson J, Jones I, Jovanovic T, Karstoft KI, Kaufman ML, Kennedy JL, Kessler RC, Khan A, Kimbrel NA, King AP, Koen N, Kotov R, Kranzler HR, Krebs K, Kremen WS, Kuan PF, Lawford BR, Lebois LAM, Lehto K, Levey DF, Lewis C, Liberzon I, Linnstaedt SD, Logue MW, Lori A, Lu Y, Luft BJ, Lupton MK, Luykx JJ, Makotkine I, Maples-Keller JL, Marchese S, Marmar C, Martin NG, MartÍnez-Levy GA, McAloney K, McFarlane A, McLaughlin KA, McLean SA, Medland SE, Mehta D, Meyers J, Michopoulos V, Mikita EA, Milani L, Milberg W, Miller MW, Morey RA, Morris CP, Mors O, Mortensen PB, Mufford MS, Nelson EC, Nordentoft M, Norman SB, Nugent NR, O'Donnell M, Orcutt HK, Pan PM, Panizzon MS, Pathak GA, Peters ES, Peterson AL, Peverill M, Pietrzak RH, Polusny MA, Porjesz B, Powers A, Qin XJ, Ratanatharathorn A, Risbrough VB, Roberts AL, Rothbaum BO, Rothbaum AO, Roy-Byrne P, Ruggiero KJ, Rung A, Runz H, Rutten BPF, de Viteri SS, Salum GA, Sampson L, Sanchez SE, Santoro M, Seah C, Seedat S, Seng JS, Shabalin A, Sheerin CM, Silove D, Smith AK, Smoller JW, Sponheim SR, Stein DJ, Stensland S, Stevens JS, Sumner JA, Teicher MH, Thompson WK, Tiwari AK, Trapido E, Uddin M, Ursano RJ, Valdimarsdóttir U, van den Heuvel LL, Van Hooff M, van Rooij SJ, Vermetten E, Vinkers CH, Voisey J, Wang Z, Wang Y, Waszczuk M, Weber H, Wendt FR, Werge T, Williams MA, Williamson DE, Winsvold BS, Winternitz S, Wolf EJ, Wolf C, Xia Y, Xiong Y, Yehuda R, Young RM, Young KA, Zai CC, Zai GC, Zervas M, Zhao H, Zoellner LA, Zwart JA, Stein MB, Ressler KJ, Koenen KC.

medRxiv. 2023 Sep 02. PMID: 37693460


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