David H. Barlow

David H. Barlow (born April 30, 1942) is an American psychologist and Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Psychiatry at Boston University.

He is board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology.

Barlow is known for his research and publications on the etiology, nature, and treatment of anxiety disorders.

The models and treatment methods that he developed for anxiety and related disorders are widely used in clinical training and practice.

Barlow is one of the most frequently cited psychologists in the world.

Barlow has published over 650 articles and book chapters, as well as over 95 books and clinical manuals, some of which has been translated to more than 20 languages.

He is best known for his book titled, Anxiety and Its Disorders: The Nature and Treatment of Anxiety and Panic.

Barlow has received numerous awards for his contributions to the field of psychology, including the American Psychological Association (APA) Distinguished Scientific Award for the Applications of Psychology, the James McKeen Cattell Fellow Award from the Association for Psychological Science for "distinguished achievements in psychological science", and Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Connecticut, California, and Massachusetts Psychological Associations.

Barlow was born in Needham, Massachusetts, U.S., in 1942.

His father left to fight in World War II shortly before he was born and was killed in action.

Barlow grew up living with his mother and maternal grandparents.

Influenced by his grandfather and uncle, Barlow cultivated a passion for sports at a young age.

As a child, Barlow had even entertained the idea of a professional career in sports, especially after his baseball team made it to the Little League World Series when he was 12.

Yet, Barlow was also an avid reader and a scholar of classical languages, having studied six years of Latin and two years of Greek in high school.

His early literary pursuits fueled his continued fascination with the written word.

Barlow attended the University of Notre Dame in 1960, for an undergraduate degree in sociology and English.

During intensive studies of literature, Barlow became intrigued by the often self-defeating actions of fictional characters, and he began analyzing the psychological motivations of such acts in his literary discourse.

To pursue his interest in psychology, Barlow attended Boston College in 1964.

He was a student of Joseph R. Cautela, one of the pioneers in behavior therapy who eventually became president of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), formerly known as the Association for Advancement of Behavior Therapy (AABT).

Barlow delved into the realm of experimental psychology in Cautela's research laboratories.

He was convinced by Cautela that the practical applications of psychology can only advance through a scientific approach to the subject.

In the summer of 1966, Barlow worked with Joseph Wolpe, widely known as the father of behavior therapy, to gain clinical experience in Wolpe's emerging techniques of systematic desensitization, assertiveness training, and reciprocal inhibition.

In the same fall, Barlow left Boston to attend the University of Vermont for his doctoral degree.

He worked under Harold Leitenberg and Stewart Agras who were collaborating on a clinical research program at the time.

Together, they developed a new experimental approach to clinical research, later known as single case experimental designs, for which Barlow eventually published a sourcebook.

Barlow received his Ph.D. in 1969.

After completing his PhD, Barlow became an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) in 1969.

He founded the clinical psychology internship program there, with the aim of training students on science-based clinical practices.

In 1974, he was promoted to professor of psychiatry.

In 1975, Barlow relocated to Brown University with a joint appointment as professor of psychiatry and psychology, and Director of Education and Training at Butler Hospital.

At Brown, Barlow was again in charge of creating a clinical psychology internship program, which had been successful at the UMMC.

Barlow was to spend five years at Brown.

In 1979, Barlow served as the president of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT).

Throughout this time, Barlow broadened and deepened his research on anxiety and related disorders, but also developed a research program on understanding sexual behaviors and gender expression.

Some of this work included "treating" individuals with "sexual deviations" which at the time included homosexual men with behavioral techniques including covert sensitization, fading, biofeedback fading, and classical conditioning, a practice that is now known as conversion therapy.

One of the studies details changes in gender identity expression that were attributed to an exorcism.

In 1979, Barlow accepted a position as professor (and later, distinguished professor) of psychology at the State University of New York at Albany.

It was here where Barlow was able to focus more deeply on clinical research.

He also has been awarded honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Vermont and William James College, the Career/Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), and the American Psychological Foundation's 2018 Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology.

Barlow is currently Founder of the Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders and Professor of Psychology and Brain Sciences, and Psychiatry, Emeritus at Boston University.