Michael Scott Esterman, PhD
Associate Professor, Psychiatry

Biography
My research uses a variety of cognitive neuroscience techniques to understand basic mechanisms of attention and executive function, as well as to understand PTSD and other neuropsychiatric disorders.
Other Positions
- VA Boston Healthcare System
- Graduate Faculty (Primary Mentor of Grad Students), Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences
Education
- University of California, Berkeley, PhD
- University of Pennsylvania, BA
Publications
- Published on 4/21/2023
Jagger-Rickels A, Stumps A, Rothlein D, Evans T, Lee D, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. Aberrant connectivity in the right amygdala and right middle temporal gyrus before and after a suicide attempt: Examining markers of suicide risk. J Affect Disord. 2023 Apr 21; 335:24-35. PMID: 37086805.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 2/13/2023
DeGutis J, Agnoli S, Bernstein JPK, Jagger-Rickels A, Evans TC, Fortier CB, McGlinchey RE, Milberg WP, Esterman M. Poorer Inhibitory Control Uniquely Contributes to Greater Functional Disability in Post-9/11 Veterans. Arch Clin Neuropsychol. 2023 Feb 13. PMID: 36781401.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/17/2022
DeGutis J, Yosef B, Lee EA, Saad E, Arizpe J, Song JS, Wilmer J, Germine L, Esterman M. The rise and fall of face recognition awareness across the life span. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform. 2023 Jan; 49(1):22-33. PMID: 36395052.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 9/29/2022
Fry R, Li X, Evans TC, Esterman M, Tanaka J, DeGutis J. Investigating the Influence of Autism Spectrum Traits on Face Processing Mechanisms in Developmental Prosopagnosia. J Autism Dev Disord. 2022 Sep 29. PMID: 36173532.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 9/20/2022
Evans TC, Esterman M, Britton JC. Social avoidance behavior modulates motivational responses to social reward-threat conflict signals: A preliminary fMRI study. Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2023 Feb; 23(1):42-65. PMID: 36127489.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 8/6/2022
Evans TC, Alonso MR, Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, Zuberer A, Bernstein J, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, Villalon A, Jorge R, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. PTSD symptomatology is selectively associated with impaired sustained attention ability and dorsal attention network synchronization. Neuroimage Clin. 2022; 36:103146. PMID: 36055063.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 8/3/2022
Poole VN, Dawe RJ, Lamar M, Esterman M, Barnes L, Leurgans SE, Bennett DA, Hausdorff JM, Buchman AS. Dividing attention during the Timed Up and Go enhances associations of several subtask performances with MCI and cognition. PLoS One. 2022; 17(8):e0269398. PMID: 35921260.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/1/2022
Patt VM, Palombo DJ, Esterman M, Verfaellie M. Hippocampal Contribution to Probabilistic Feedback Learning: Modeling Observation- and Reinforcement-based Processes. J Cogn Neurosci. 2022 Jul 01; 34(8):1429-1446. PMID: 35604353.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 6/27/2022
Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, Stumps A, Evans TC, Bernstein J, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. An executive function subtype of PTSD with unique neural markers and clinical trajectories. Transl Psychiatry. 2022 Jun 27; 12(1):262. PMID: 35760805.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 3/2/2022
Brau JM, Sugarman A, Rothlein D, DeGutis J, Esterman M, Fortenbaugh FC. The impact of image degradation and temporal dynamics on sustained attention. J Vis. 2022 03 02; 22(4):8. PMID: 35297998.
Read at: PubMed
View 81 more publications: View full profile at BUMC