About
Isaac Ahuvia is a PhD candidate in clinical psychology at Stony Brook University, studying under Dr. Jessica Schleider in the Lab for Scalable Mental Health. His research investigates how people understand mental illness (e.g., What causes depression? Am I depressed?) and the consequences of these understandings for mental health outcomes. His research has appeared in publications such as The New York Times, Inside Higher Ed, and Mad in America. He is also the creator and instructor of an undergraduate course on the social construction of mental illness. Prior to joining the Lab for Scalable Mental Health, Isaac studied sociology at the University of Michigan and conducted research at the University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab and Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
- Cultural beliefs about mental illness
- Mental illness identity
- Healthier ways to think and talk about mental illness
PhD Candidate in Clinical Psychology
Stony Brook University
M.A. in Psychology, 2022
Stony Brook University
B.A. in Sociology, 2016
University of Michigan
Research
For a complete and up-to-date listing of published and pre-registered projects, see Isaac’s Google Scholar and OSF pages. For more information on ongoing studies, feel free to reach out via email.
Selected Publications
Ahuvia, I., & Link, B. (2025). The Mental Illness Self-Labeling Model: A Conceptual Model for Studying the Effects of Mental Illness Self-Labeling on Clinical Outcomes. Clinical Psychological Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/21677026251338829 https://psyarxiv.com/nye7s
Ahuvia, I., Schleider, J., Kneeland, E., Moser, J., & Schroder, H. (2024). Depression Self-Labeling in U.S. College Students: Associations with Perceived Control and Coping Strategies. Journal of Affective Disorders, 351, 202-210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2024.01.229 https://psyarxiv.com/jqrhu
Ahuvia, I., Sotomayor, I., Kwong, K., Lam, F., Mirza, A., & Schleider, J. (2024). Studying Causal Beliefs About Mental Illness: A Scoping Review. Social Science and Medicine, 116670. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116670 https://psyarxiv.com/x58pw
Ahuvia, I., Mullarkey, M., Sung, J., Fox, K., & Schleider, J. (2023). Evaluating a Treatment Selection Approach for Online Single-Session Interventions for Adolescent Depression. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 64(12)* 1679-1688. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13822 https://psyarxiv.com/nekhw
Ahuvia, I., & Schleider, J. (2023). Potential Harms from Emphasizing Individual Factors Over Structural Factors in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Stigmatized Groups. The Behavior Therapist, 46(7), 248-254. https://services.abct.org/i4a/doclibrary/getfile.cfm?doc_id=181 https://psyarxiv.com/n65fj
Ahuvia, I., Jans, L., & Schleider, J. (2022). Secondary Effects of Body Dissatisfaction Interventions on Depression: A Meta-Analysis. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 55(2), 231-246. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.23659 https://psyarxiv.com/6rycq
Teaching
PSY 339: The Social Construction of Mental Illness
This original course, offered by Stony Brook’s Department of Psychology, explores the way that mental illness is constructed and the consequences of this construction on affected individuals. Topics include different ways of defining mental illness, diagnosis, stigma, medicalization, and more.
R for Statistical Programming
Isaac has also developed and delivered materials aimed at introducing students and researchers to the statistical programming language R.
Consulting
Consulting services are available for research teams and anybody else interested in making the most of their data. For more information, please contact me using the email at the bottom of this page.
Photography
