Brain Imaging · PTSD · ResilienceSeptember 10, 2026·Peer-reviewed
Hope Lives in the Brain: Landmark Research on Resilience After Trauma
Published in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging — Elsevier
New research has uncovered that how the brain responds to anticipated rewards plays a key role in building psychological resilience after a traumatic experience. The findings from the new study among 9/11 responders, appearing in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, published by Elsevier, support the premise that the capacity to notice and respond to positive information in the environment may buffer the negative effects of substantial trauma exposure.
Research team
- Adriana Feder, MD — Lead investigator, Professor of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Robert H. Pietrzak, PhD, MPH — Co-lead investigator, Professor of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine
- M. Mercedes Perez-Rodriguez, MD, PhD — Co-lead investigator, Professor of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Saren Seeley, PhD — Neuroimaging analyses, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
We are grateful to co-lead investigator Robert H. Pietrzak, PhD, MPH for his contribution to this landmark research and to this community.