Justin Russotti

Biography

Grounded in an integrative theoretical and clinical orientation, with a psychodynamic emphasis, Justin Russotti’s work examines how early life experiences—particularly parent-child dynamics, attachment, and trauma—shape lifelong psychological functioning. He leads a translational research agenda that bridges basic science and clinical applications to improve mental health outcomes and generate new theory. 

Russotti’s research is guided by a developmental psychopathology framework and focuses on understanding how psychopathology unfolds over time, across one’s lifespan, as a result of dynamic interactions between the individual and their environment. His work broadly addresses the multi-level developmental sequelae of adverse childhood experiences (e.g., child maltreatment), with an emphasis on stress-related and internalizing mental health problems (e.g., depression and anxiety). He is also interested in understanding how parental factors (e.g., interparental conflict, parental psychopathology, parental maltreatment history) spill over into the parent-child system to influence parenting and potentially lead to intergenerational transmission of risk and resilience. Consistent with a counseling perspective, Russotti also applies a wellness-oriented approach to his research and practice, examining how positive childhood experiences shape mental, relational, and physical wellness throughout the lifespan. When examining the association between childhood experiences and mental health, Russotti aims to understand why this association exists (e.g., the mechanistic, explanatory processes), for whom the association exists (e.g., moderating factors), and when in development the association emerges, persists, and/or resolves (e.g., developmental timing).

Russotti’s research is funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). He is a co-investigator on a 20-year longitudinal study designed to examine the long-term effect of chronic stress and child maltreatment exposure on psychological and physical health. This work addresses how the biological embedding of chronic stress (e.g., epigenetic modifications, allostatic load) can accelerate biological aging and lead to physical and mental health problems that span generations. Russotti is also the principal investigator on a NICHD-funded Research Scientist Career Development Award (K01). This award funds his training and research efforts to harmonize data across multiple longitudinal child maltreatment cohort studies and address questions about heterogeneity in the sequelae of child abuse and neglect.

Russotti is also deeply committed to applying his research to policy and intervention. To that end, he is interested in intervention research designed to study the efficacy of therapeutic interventions and prevention programs to improve the precision of services that prevent and address mental health problems. Russotti maintains an active clinical practice that is informed by his research and leads to the generation of new research questions. 

Using advanced quantitative approaches, Russotti’s work has been published in several outlets, such as JAMA Pediatrics, Development and Psychopathology, and the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Family Violence and Parenting: Science and Practice, and as an ad-hoc reviewer for several other academic journals. He has also served on the NIH Study Section: Mechanisms of Emotion, Stress, and Health (MESH). 

Russotti joined the Warner School in 2026. Prior to his current role, he held a faculty appointment at Mt. Hope Family Center at the University of Rochester.