Peter Breggin - Research and Publications

Research and Publications

Since 1964, Breggin has published on his major topic of interest, clinical psychopharmacology. He wrote dozens of other articles, several book chapters, and more than twenty books. Many of Breggin's more recent articles are published in the peer-reviewed journal he co-founded with David Cohen and Steven Baldwin, Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, and in The International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine as well as in other scientific journals such as Primary Psychiatry (2006), and the Journal of Humanistic Psychology (2000). Breggin wrote his first peer-reviewed articles in the arena of psychopharmacology in 1964 and 1965. Many of his published articles discuss psychiatric medication, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drug approval process, the evaluation of clinical trials, and the ethics of psychiatric practice. According to the Web of Science, Breggin's work has been cited by more than 700 publications, with an h-index of 20.

In 1971, Breggin founded the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology (ICSPP)www.psychintegrity.org, a nonprofit research and educational network. The center is concerned with the impact of mental health theory and practices upon individual well-being, personal freedom, and family and community values. As of July 2008, the center has a board of directors composed of 27 psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, counselors and other professionals in the mental health field. The center holds annual scientific conferences that are open to the public. In 1999, the Center began to publish Ethical Human Sciences and Services (EHSS), which was later renamed Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry. The peer-reviewed journal is published by Springer Publishing Company (no affiliation with Springer Verlag), and "is the official journal of the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry". The stated goal of EHSS is to, "raise the level of scientific knowledge and ethical discourse, while empowering professionals who are devoted to principled human sciences and services unsullied by professional and economic interests." According to the Scopus database, since its inception the most citations it has received in a year is 13. In 2002, Breggin encouraged younger professionals to take over the leadership of ICSPP and Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry. Peter Breggin is not currently on the Board of Directors of ICSPP, does not participate in board meetings, and has no role within the organization.

While he's not conducted clinical drug trials, Breggin's critiques and reviews of the scientific literature are published in peer-reviewed journals such as Primary Psychiatry, Brain and Cognition, Mind and Behavior, and the Archives of General Psychiatry.