Melissa Lee Anderson

Melissa Lee Anderson is an Associate Professor at UMass Chan Medical School with primary appointments in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences within the School of Medicine. She holds additional positions in Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, Masters in Clinical Investigation, and Population Health Sciences across the T.H. Chan School of Medicine and Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

• Boston University: BA in Psychology, BS in Deaf Studies
• Gallaudet University: MA and PhD in Clinical Psychology

As a Gallaudet University-trained psychologist, Dr. Anderson specializes in Deaf mental health with research focusing on trauma, substance use disorders, and healthcare accessibility for Deaf communities. She founded the DeafYES! Center for Deaf Empowerment and Recovery at UMass Chan Medical School in 2014, where she provides outpatient therapy and conducts community-engaged research. Her work consistently addresses barriers in behavioral healthcare systems, violence against Deaf women, and development of culturally accessible interventions like the Signs of Safety toolkit.

Her publication trends (2010-2023) reveal strong emphasis on Deaf-specific trauma experiences, substance use epidemiology in Deaf populations, and methodological innovations for linguistically appropriate research. Key fields include trauma psychology (32% of publications), substance-related disorders (18%), and audiology/education (25%), with growing focus on implementation science and health equity in recent years.

• APA/APAGS Award for Distinguished Graduate Student in Professional Psychology (2012)
• High-impact publications in Health Affairs (2022, Altmetric score 3) and Social Psychiatry (2017, 33 citations)
• Leadership in NIH-funded studies on clinical trial accessibility for Deaf participants

Dr. Anderson actively mentors through the DeafYES! Center and collaborates with national experts like Lisa Najavits (Seeking Safety protocol) and Nancy Byatt (perinatal mental health). Her research has influenced policy through 5 policy source references and generated significant social media engagement (32 X posts for 2017 Social Psychiatry paper). Current work focuses on adapting evidence-based practices for Deaf trauma survivors using community-based participatory approaches.