Brian M Hicks

Brian M. Hicks, Ph.D., is Professor with tenure at the Addiction Center in the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Hicks is a Michigan native and completed his undergraduate studies at Eastern Michigan University. He went on to earn his doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Minnesota and then completed a postdoctoral position at the Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research. Dr. Hicks has been the principal investigator on multiple National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
Dr. Hicks' research focuses on examining the interplay among genetic, environmental, and developmental influences on the emergence, persistence, and desistence of substance use disorders, antisocial behavior, and disinhibitory personality traits. He is also a collaborator on multiple longitudinal neuroimaging studies of adolescents and young adults to investigate the interplay between brain development and substance use. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he also conducted several waves of the COVID-19 Adjustment and Behavior Survey to study psychological and behavioral adaptation during the pandemic. Dr. Hicks was recently awarded a grant from NIMH to expand his research into firearm injury and mortality prevention. Dr. Hicks’ research accomplishments have been recognized by early career contribution awards from the Behavior Genetics Association, the Society for Research in Psychopathology, the Society for the Scientific Study of Psychopathy, and the Research Faculty Recognition Award from the Office of Research at the University of Michigan.

Areas of Interest

- Genetic, environmental, and developmental influences on substance use and antisocial behavior
- Early behavioral and neurobiological risk for substance use disorders
- Personality development
- Adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Firearm injury and mortality prevention