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Avshalom Caspi

Edward M. Arnett Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience
Psychology & Neuroscience
2020 W Main Street Suite 201, Box 104410, Durham, NC 27708
2020 W Main Street Suite 201, Box 104410, Durham, NC 27708

Overview


Caspi’s research is concerned with three questions: (1) How do childhood experiences shape aging and the course of health inequalities across the life span?  (2) How do genetic differences between people shape the way they respond to their environments? (3) How do mental health problems unfold across and shape the life course? 

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Edward M. Arnett Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience · 2008 - Present Psychology & Neuroscience, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience · 2007 - Present Psychology & Neuroscience, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences · 2012 - Present Psychiatry, Child & Family Mental Health & Community Psychiatry, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Faculty Research Scholar of DuPRI's Population Research Center · 2010 - Present Duke Population Research Center, Duke Population Research Institute
Faculty Research Scholar of DuPRI's Center for Population Health & Aging · 2011 - Present Center for Population Health & Aging, Duke Population Research Institute

In the News


Published July 1, 2025
Scientists Can Tell How Fast You’re Aging From a Single Brain Scan
Published January 13, 2025
How Fast Are You Aging? A ‘Speedometer’ Tells You
Published September 19, 2024
Mental Health Concerns Are a Huge Part of Primary Care Practice

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Recent Publications


Parental income and psychiatric disorders from age 10 to 40: a genetically informative population study.

Journal Article Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines · January 2026 BackgroundLower parental income is associated with more psychiatric disorders among offspring, but it is unclear if this association reflects effects of parental income (social causation) or shared risk factors (social selection). Prior research f ... Full text Cite

Maternal expressions of warmth and negativity and adolescent mental health: using longitudinal monozygotic twin-difference analyses to approach causal inference.

Journal Article Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines · January 2026 BackgroundEmotions that mothers express about their offspring are associated with offspring mental health during childhood, but little research has explored whether this extends into adolescence. We investigated associations between maternal warmt ... Full text Cite

PTSD and suPAR: A multicohort investigation of chronic inflammation.

Journal Article Brain Behav Immun · January 2026 Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with poor health. Prior research has shown stressful events are associated with inflammatory biomarkers, such as soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR), suggesting systemic chronic inflam ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite
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Recent Grants


Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Predict Mental Health Risk among Youth Presenting to Rural Primary Care Clinics

ResearchCo Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2025 - 2029

Duke-NCCU Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Training Program in Child Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Conditions Program (DN-IPT)

Inst. Training Prgm or CMEPreceptor · Awarded by National Institute of Mental Health · 2024 - 2029

Duke University Psychiatry Physician-Scientist Residency Training Program

Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institute of Mental Health · 2024 - 2029

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Education, Training & Certifications


Cornell University · 1986 Ph.D.
Cornell University · 1983 M.A.
University of California, Santa Cruz · 1981 B.A.