Department of
Psychological and Brain Sciences

• Clinical Science
• Developmental Psychology

• Developmental Psychopathology
• Pharmacoepidemiology
• Behavior Genetics/Genetic Epidemiology
• Dissemination and Implementation

My research, rooted in the field of developmental psychopathology, seeks to understand the etiology, assessment, and treatment of behavioral health problems (i.e., substance use and mental health problems). My research leverages advances in clinical psychology, developmental science, epidemiology/biostatistics, medicine, genetics, and dissemination and implementation research to answer fundamental questions in the field of public health. My colleagues and I primarily use three main approaches: (1) advanced epidemiologic methods, (2) longitudinal studies, and (3) intervention studies/health services research.

First, we use several advanced designs that rigorously test alternative hypotheses when we examine how specific environmental risk and protective factors influence behavioral health problems. In particular, we use within-individual comparisons (e.g., we examine the risks of ADHD medication use when the same individual is on and off medication), sibling-comparisons (e.g., we compare siblings who are differentially exposed to maternal prescription drug use during pregnancy), cousin-comparisons (e.g., we study cousins who are differentially exposed to parental suicide), and offspring of twins (e.g., we study the offspring of identical twins who differed in their age at first childbearing).

Longitudinal analyses constitute the second major research program that we are using to study causal mechanisms. This enables us to use within-individual comparisons in our studies of the risks and benefits of medications. Analyzing longitudinal studies enables us to take a lifespan developmental approach and explore reciprocal process (i.e., how individuals influence and are influenced by risk factors across time). Longitudinal analyses also provide the opportunity to whether there are sensitive periods of development.

Our third major research approach is the use of intervention studies/dissemination and implementation research, particularly focused on how best to assess behavioral health problems in community settings. For example, I am studying the implementation of computer adaptive testing of behavioral health problems with community partners, including IU Health and the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction. I also collaborate a team of researchers (e.g., Amy Holtzworth-Munroe and Amy Applegate) on intervention studies for couples going through divorce/separation.

D’Onofrio, B.M., Sjölander, A., Lahey, B.B., Lichtenstein, P., Oberg, A.S. (forthcoming). Accounting for confounding in observational studies. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology.  

Ghirardi, L., Larsson, H., Chang, Z., Chen, Q., Quinn, P.D, Hur, K., Gibbons, R.D., D’Onofrio, B.M. (in press). ADHD medication and unintentional injuries in children and adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Quinn, P.D., Hur, K., Chang, Z., Scott, E.L., Krebs, E.E., Bair, M.J., Rickert, M.E., Gibbons, R.D., Kroenke, K., D’Onofrio, B.M. (2018) Associations of mental health conditions and treatments with long-term opioid analgesic receipt among adolescents. JAMA Pediatrics, 172,423-430.

Wiggs, K.K., Chang, Z., Quinn, P.D., Hur, K., Gibbons, R., Dunn, D., Brikell, I., Larsson, H., D’Onofrio, B.M. (2018). Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Medication and Seizures. Neurology, 90,e1104-e1110.

Class, Q.A., Rickert, M.E., Oberg, A.S., Sujan, A.C., Almqvist, C., Larsson, H., Lichtenstein, P., & D’Onofrio, B.M. (2017). Within-family analysis of interpregnancy interval and adverse birth outcomes. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 130, 1304-1311.

Quinn, P. D., Chang, Z., Hur, K., Gibbons, R. D., Lahey, B. B., Rickert, M. E., Sjölander, A., Lichtenstein, P., Larsson, H., & D’Onofrio, B.M. (2017). ADHD medication and substance-related problems. American Journal of Psychiatry, 174, 877-885.

Sujan, A.C., Rickert, M.E., Oberg, A.S., Quinn, P.D., Hernandez-Diaz, S., Almqvist, C., Lichtenstein, P., Larsson, H., & D’Onofrio, B.M. (2017). Associations of maternal antidepressant use during the first trimester of pregnancy with preterm birth, small for gestational age, autism spectrum disorder, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in offspring. JAMA, 317, 1553-1562.

• Clinical Science
• Developmental Psychology