Neil Woodward, PhD
I am engaged in research, clinical service, education, and administration. Most of my effort is dedicated to running an independent clinical research lab focused on the neural basis of psychotic disorders, primarily schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. My research is motivated by the premise that studying the brain will inform the etiology, heterogeneity, and treatment of psychotic disorders. I use several methods to study the brain, including multimodal neuroimaging, neuropsychological testing, and cognitive neuroscience techniques. These methods are applied to address the following related aims: 1) Identify brain abnormalities in psychotic disorders; 2) Inform the neural basis of clinical symptoms and associated features; and 3) Improve neural models of psychosis. I am especially interested in the thalamus and characterizing thalamic abnormalities in psychotic disorders. My work in psychotic disorders is embedded in a neurodevelopmental context and is complemented by research on characterizing brain development across the lifespan in healthy individuals, at-risk populations (e.g. psychosis spectrum youth), and people with neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g. autism). As a licensed Clinical Neuropsychologist, I perform neuropsychological evaluations on individuals with psychiatric and neurological disorders. Mentoring the next generation of researchers and clinician-scientists is a core component of my career. My research program and clinical service serve as a platform for mentoring trainees at all levels across the spectrum of basic, translational, and clinical science.
Clinical Interests
Neuropsychological assessment, Psychotic disorders, Geriatric neuropsychology, Neurology
Research Information
Neuropsychology, Neuroimaging, Psychotic disorders, Lifespan brain development, developmental disorders
Representative Publications
Huang AS, Kang K, Vandekar S, Rogers BP, Heckers S, Woodward ND. (2024) Lifespan development of thalamic nuclei and characterizing thalamic nuclei abnormalities in schizophrenia using normative modelling. Neuropsychopharmacology, 49:1518-1527.
Moussa-Tooks AB, Rogers BP, Huang AS, Sheffield JM, Stephan H, Woodward ND. (2022) Cerebellar structure and cognitive ability in psychosis. Biological Psychiatry, 92(5):385-395.
Huang AS, Rogers BP, Sheffield JM, Jalbrzikowski ME, Anticevic AA, Blackford JU, Heckers S, Woodward ND. (2020) Thalamic nuclei volumes in psychotic disorders and youth with psychosis spectrum symptoms. American Journal of Psychiatry, 177(12):1159-1167.
Sheffield JM, Rogers BP, Blackford JU, Heckers S, Woodward ND. (2019) Accelerated aging of functional brain networks supporting cognitive function in psychotic disorders. Biological Psychiatry, 86(3):240-248.
Giraldo-Chica M, Rogers BP, Damon SM, Landman BA, Woodward ND. (2018) Prefrontal-thalamic anatomical connectivity and executive cognitive function in schizophrenia. Biological Psychiatry, 83(6):509-517.
Woodward ND, Heckers S. (2016) Mapping thalamocortical functional connectivity in chronic and early stages of psychotic disorders. Biological Psychiatry, 79(12):1016-25.
Woodward ND, Heckers S. (2015) Brain structure in neuropsychologically defined sub-groups of schizophrenia and psychotic bipolar disorder. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 41(6):1349-59.
Woodward ND, Karbasforoushan H, Heckers S. (2012) Thalamocortical dysconnectivity in schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry, 169(10): 1092-9.
Woodward ND, Rogers B, Heckers S. (2011) Functional resting-state networks are differentially affected in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research, 130(1-3): 86-93.
Woodward ND, Purdon SE, Meltzer HY, Zald DH. (2005) A meta-analysis of neuropsychological change to clozapine, olanzapine, quetiapine, and risperidone in schizophrenia. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 8(3): 457-472.