Mennin, Douglas (dm3297)

Dr. Doug Mennin has developed an active program of research in clinical trials and basic research into the nature of chronic and recurring bouts of anxiety and mood disorders, particularly worry, stress, and depression. He has examined these problems from a perspective that highlights the importance of one's ability to efficiently process emotional situations when they arise as well as manage resultant moods in effective rather than maladaptive ways. He has conducted numerous studies of the basic psychological and physiological mechanisms of generalized anxiety and depression and has recently been examining the role of worry and rumination in maintaining and exacerbating gastric dysfunction and chronic inflammation. He also regularly conducts psychotherapy outcome and mechanism research. Specifically, he has developed Emotion Regulation Therapy (ERT), which is an integrative mind-body psychotherapy that draws from contemporary approaches as well as affect science and neuroscience.  Dr. Mennin’s work on ERT has demonstrated considerable positive outcomes as well as identified a number of cognitive, physiological, and neural mechanisms that may help explain how the therapy is effective.  Along with colleagues at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and in Denmark, he has also recently adapted this approach to treat distressed caregivers of patients with cancer. 

B.A., Oberlin College

Ph.D., Temple University

Renna, M. E., Quintero, J. M., Soffer, A., Pino, M., Ader, L., Fresco, D. M., & Mennin, D.S. (in press). Emotion Regulation Therapy for generalized anxiety and depression in a diverse sample of young adults. Behavior Therapy.

Renna, M. E., Seeley, S. H., Etkin, A., Heimberg, R. G., Fresco, D. M., & Mennin, D. S. (in press). Increased attention flexibility from Emotion Regulation Therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Cognitive Therapy and Research.

Fresco, D. M., Roy, A. K., Adelsberg, S., Seeley, S., García-Lesy, E., Liston, C., & Mennin, D. S. (2017). Distinct functional connectivities predict clinical response with Emotion Regulation Therapy. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (Research Topic, Can't Get You Out of My Head: Brain-Body Interactions in Perseverative Cognition), 11, Article 86, 1-13.

Renna, M. E., Quintero, J. M., Mennin, D. S., & Fresco, D.M. (2017). Emotion Regulation Therapy: A mechanism-targeted treatment for disorders of distress. Frontiers in Psychology (Research Topic on Emotion Science, Advances in Emotion Regulation: from neuroscience to psychotherapy), 8, Article 98, 1-14.

Mennin, D. S., Fresco, D.M., Heimberg, R.G., & Ritter, M. (2015). An open trial of Emotion Regulation Therapy for generalized anxiety disorder and co-occurring depression. Depression & Anxiety, 32, 614-623.

Andreescu  C., Mennin, D. S., Tudorascu, D., Sheu, L. K., Walker, S., Banihashemi, L., & Aizenstein, H. (2015). The many faces of anxiety - neurobiological correlates of anxiety phenotypes. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, 234, 96-105.

Mennin, D. S., & Fresco, D. M. (2015). Advancing emotion regulation perspectives on psychopathology: The challenge of distress disorders. Commentary on Gross (2015). Psychological Inquiry, 26, 80-92.

Mennin, D. S., & Fresco, D. M. (2014). Emotion Regulation Therapy (pp. 469-490). In J.J. Gross (Ed.), Handbook of Emotion Regulation (Second Edition). New York: Guilford Press.

Mennin, D. S., Ellard, K. K., Fresco, D. M., & Gross, J. J. (2013). United we stand: Emphasizing commonalities across cognitive-behavioral therapies. Behavior Therapy, 44, 234-248.

Mennin, D. S., & Fresco, D. M. (2013). What, me worry and ruminate about DSM-V and RDoC?: The importance of targeting negative self-referential processing. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 20, 258-267.

Proudfit, G. H., Inzlicht, M., & Mennin, D. S. (2013). Anxiety and error monitoring:  O emotion, where art thou? Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, Article 636, 1-4.

Aldao, A., Mennin, D. S., & McLaughlin, K. A. (2013). Differentiating worry and rumination: Evidence from context-dependent heart rate variability. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 37, 613-619.

Fresco, D. M., Mennin, D. S., & Heimberg, R. G. (2013). Emotion Regulation Therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 20, 282-300.

Mankus, A. M., *Aldao, A., *Kerns, C., *Wright, E. M., & Mennin, D. S. (2013). Mindfulness and heart rate variability in individuals with high and low generalized anxiety symptoms. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 51, 386-391.

Cooper, S. E., Miranda, R., & Mennin, D. S. (2013). Behavioral indicators of emotion avoidance and subsequent worry in generalized anxiety disorder and depression. Journal of Experimental Psychopathology, 5, 566-583.

Aldao, A., & Mennin, D. S. (2012). Paradoxical physiological effects of implementing adaptive emotion regulation strategies in generalized anxiety disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 50, 122-130.