Turhan Canli

Turhan Canli, Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at Stony Brook University, made seminal contributions to the neuroscience and neurogenetics of individual differences in emotion, personality, and social behavior. Canli's early studies were in the domain of behavioral neuroscience and followed the Yale tradition of classical learning theory of the Rescorla-Wagner model, focusing on the neural basis of learning and memory in Pavlovian learning phenomena and learned fear. In 2014 and 2015, Canli published and presented his ideas on depression as an infectious disease to academic and public audience. In 2019, Canli published an updated theory on the role of human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) in mental health, suggesting that trauma or viral infections can activate HERVs embedded in human DNA to promote resilience or vulnerability. Since 2016, Canli has become increasingly involved in global mental health and human rights issues.