James F. Leckman, Ph.D.

Yale Professor of Child Psychiatry, Psychology, and Pediatrics, Repeatedly Named a “Best Doctor in America”

"We need to take action to make our world a better place for our children and for future generations."

Affiliations: 

  • Early Childhood Peace Consortium (ECPC): Steering Committee Member
  • Brain and Behavior Research Foundation: Scientific Council Member
  • American College of Psychiatrists: Member
  • American Psychiatric Association: Fellow
  • American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychology: Fellow
  • American College of Neuropsychopharmacology: Fellow
  • The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry: Associate Editor
  • The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychology: Deputy Editor

Awards: 

  • Julius Axelrod Mentorship Award, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
  • Transformative Research Award, National Institutes of Health
  • Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research, Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
  • Distinguished Investigator, Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
  • Blanche E. Ittleson Award for Research in Child Psychiatry, American Psychiatric Association
  • Outstanding Research Mentor, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists (awarded five times)
  • Distinguished Alumni Award, College of Wooster

Publications: 

  • Tourette’s Syndrome: Tics, Obsessions, Compulsions: Developmental Psychopathology and Clinical Care, co-authored with Donald J. Cohen
  • Current Diagnosis & Treatment Psychiatry, co-authored with Michael Ebert and Ismene Petrakis
  • Pediatric Psychopharmacology: Principles and Practice, co-edited with Andres Martin, Lawrence Scahill, and Dennis S. Charney.
  • Author, co-author, or co-editor of 12 books, over 430 articles, and 140 book chapters.

Education: 

  • University of São Paulo, Ph.D.
  • University of New Mexico, M.D.
  • College of Wooster, Bachelor’s Degree
  • Yale University School of Medicine, Fellow
  • National Institute of Mental Health Intramural Program, Postdoctoral training
  • Connecticut Mental Health Center, Resident

Jim Leckman is a widely published child psychiatrist and groundbreaking physician and researcher.  

Jim is Yale University’s Neison Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Psychiatry, Psychology and Pediatrics and served as the Director of Research for the Yale Child Study Center from 1983 to 2010. In addition to repeatedly being named “Best Doctor in America” by other doctors, he also is recognized as one of the world’s most cited experts in psychology and psychiatry.  

He is involved in international projects focused on the importance of early childhood development interventions as a path to a more peaceful world and is committed to helping children live the best, most productive lives possible.