Jennifer J. Vasterling, PhD

Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

Dr. Vasterling serves as the Chief of Psychology at VA Boston Healthcare System. She is also a clinical investigator within the Behavioral Sciences Division of the VA National Center for PTSD. Dr. Vasterling obtained her Ph.D. in psychology from Vanderbilt University in 1988, subsequently completing pre- and post-doctoral training in clinical neuropsychology at the VA Boston Healthcare System/Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine.

Dr. Vasterling has served on the editorial boards of several journals, and currently serves on the board of Psychological Assessment. Her research has centered on neurocognitive and emotional changes that accompany war-zone deployment and posttraumatic stress responses. She is the lead editor of the sole book on the neuropsychology of PTSD and of a book on mild traumatic brain injury and PTSD. She is additionally an editor of a book addressing the mental health concerns of returning veterans.

Dr. Vasterling is the 2009 recipient of the American Psychological Association Trauma Psychology (Division 56) Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award. Her recent work, funded by the VA Cooperative Studies program and NIMH, involves longitudinal examination of neuropsychological and emotional outcomes of military deployment to Iraq and the mental health outcomes of their family members. She currently serves as President of the Society for Clinical Neuropsychology (Division 40 of the American Psychological Association).

Publications

  • Published 9/18/2025

    Vasterling JJ, Bhalla A, Franz MR, Kaiser AP, Lee LO. War zone veteran cognitive-related functional decline and posttraumatic stress symptoms: Relationship to intimate partner stress. Psychol Trauma. 2025 Sep 18. PMID: 40965954.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 5/7/2025

    Lawrence KA, Speaks HR, Abner EL, Schmitt FA, Vasterling JJ, Smith BN, Segerstrom SC. Lifetime posttraumatic stress disorder and longitudinal cognitive decline: A cognitive aging framework in the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set. J Trauma Stress. 2025 Aug; 38(4):646-658. PMID: 40339160.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 1/26/2025

    Verfaellie M, Patt V, Lafleche G, Jones D, Vasterling JJ. Choosing certainty over risk: Associations of PTSD symptom severity with memory sampling during experiential decision making. J Anxiety Disord. 2025 Mar; 110:102979. PMID: 39889322.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 10/17/2024

    Knoff AA, Vasterling JJ, Verfaellie M. Beyond trauma: a review of content and linguistic characteristics of nontrauma narratives in posttraumatic stress disorder. Eur J Psychotraumatol. 2024; 15(1):2407733. PMID: 39415679.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 6/24/2024

    Verfaellie M, Patt V, Lafleche G, Vasterling JJ. Associations between PTSD and temporal discounting: The role of future thinking. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry. 2024 Dec; 85:101978. PMID: 38964185.

    Read at: PubMed

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Websites

Education

  • Vanderbilt University, PhD
  • Louisiana State University, BS

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