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Deanna Barch


Professor of Psychology; Professor of Radiology

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Barch studies cognitive and language deficits in disorders such as schizophrenia, and the neurobiological mechanisms that contribute to such deficits. Her research includes behavioral, pharmacological, and neuroimaging studies with normal and clinical populations. One line of research examines discourse-level components of language production in terms of working memory function (in normal populations) and dysfunction (in schizophrenia), and the mediating role of prefrontal cortex and modulatory neurotransmitters (e.g., dopamine).

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OHMB recognizes Barch with Glass Brain Award

OHMB recognizes Barch with Glass Brain Award

The Organization for Human Brain Mapping has awarded its Glass Brain Award to Deanna Barch, of Arts & Sciences and the School of Medicine, in recognition of her influential work on the function of the human brain.
Barch recognized for achievement, excellence

Barch recognized for achievement, excellence

The Society for Research in Psychopathology has awarded its Joseph Zubin Lifetime Achievement Award to WashU’s Deanna Barch in recognition of her lifetime contributions to the understanding of the field.
Barch, Bateman elected to National Academy of Medicine

Barch, Bateman elected to National Academy of Medicine

Deanna M. Barch, chair of psychological and brain sciences in Arts & Sciences and the Gregory B. Couch Professor of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine, and Randall J. Bateman, MD, professor of neurology at the School of Medicine and director of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer’s Network and Trials Unit, have been elected to the National Academy of Medicine.
How team sports change a child’s brain

How team sports change a child’s brain

Adult depression has long been associated with shrinkage of the hippocampus, a brain region that plays an important role in memory and response to stress. Now, new research from Washington University in St. Louis has linked participation in team sports to larger hippocampal volumes in children and less depression in boys ages 9 to 11.

Barch, Ley, Boime to be honored

Deanna Barch, a leading researcher on the role of cognition, emotion and brain function in illnesses such as schizophrenia and depression; Irving Boime, a developmental biologist; and Timothy Ley, MD, an expert in cancer genomics and leukemia, will be honored by Washington University in St. Louis, Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton has announced.

Research offers clues for dealing with anxiety, childhood depression, schizophrenia

Research is shedding new light on what happens in the brains of children and adults affected by clinical depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia, according to Washington University in St. Louis studies presented at a recent mental health symposium. The findings, which come as America celebrates Mental Health Awareness Month, point to new treatment options for preschool-aged children with significant clinical depression and for severely depressed adults who don’t respond to standard treatments, such as antidepressants and psychotherapy.

Barch named new director of Conte Center

BarchThe Silvio Conte Center for Neuroscience Research at Washington University has a new director. Deanna Barch, associate professor of psychology in Arts & Sciences, of psychiatry and of radiology, takes over leadership of the center from John Csernansky, the former Gregory B. Couch Professor of Psychiatry, who has become the chairman of psychiatry at Northwestern University.

Memory study shows brain function in schizophrenia can improve

Deanna Barch (center) discusses brain imaging techniques used in the experiment, which used the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) machine (shown at right).When encouraged to use memorization strategies commonly employed by healthy individuals, people with schizophrenia can be helped to remember information just as well as their healthy counterparts, a process that in itself seems to spur a normalization of memory-related activities in the brains of people with schizophrenia, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

Memory study shows brain function in schizophrenia can improve with support, holds promise for cognitive rehabilitation

Deanna Barch (right), co-author of a memory study that used a functional magnetic resonance imaging machine (shown in the background) to monitor the brain activity of people with schizophrenia.When encouraged to use memorization strategies commonly employed by healthy individuals, people with schizophrenia can be helped to remember information just as well as their healthy counterparts, a process that in itself seems to spur a normalization of memory-related activities in the brains of people with schizophrenia, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

Crippling anxiety disorders often helped by behavorial therapy

A psychologist at Washington University in St. Louis says that people who suffer from social anxiety disorders can receive help through cognitive behavior therapy.Citing statistics that show that many people fear public speaking more than death, comedian Jerry Seinfeld once joked that if you’re at a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy. But for people who suffer from social anxiety disorders, one of which is public speaking, it’s no laughing matter. These people’s personal lives and careers can be sidelined by fear of certain social situations, such as speaking with a boss or authority figure, making telephone calls or attending parties. The good news is that these disorders are highly treatable through cognitive behavior therapy, in particular, group therapy, according to a psychologist at Washington University in St. Louis.