Michael D. Anestis, PhD (he/him/his)

Mike D. Anestis, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Urban-Global Public Health at the Rutgers School of Public Health. He is also the executive director of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center. His work focuses on suicide prevention among both civilians and service members, with a particular focus on the role of firearms. He is the author of approximately 180 peer reviewed articles as well as the book Guns and Suicide: An American Epidemic, published by Oxford University Press in 2018.

Dr. Anestis was the 2018 recipient of the Edwin Shneidman Award from the American Association of Suicidology in recognition of his early career achievements in suicide research and currently serves on advisory board for a number of organizations, including the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the Jed Foundation. He received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Florida State University, where he studied under Dr. Thomas Joiner.

Dr. Anestis is an expert in the field of suicidology and his work on the role of firearms in suicide has earned him significant national attention. His work has helped clarify to what extent firearms increase the risk for suicide and - perhaps more importantly - how firearms confer such risk. His work resulted in the publication of a book - Guns and Suicide: An American Epidemic - as well as an active line of peer reviewed published research. Dr. Anestis has worked particularly closely with the military, leading a randomized controlled trial of lethal means counseling for firearm owning members of the National Guard - one of the first such trials in the nation.