Robert Featherstone, PhD

Robert E. Featherstone, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Research in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California. His research focuses on the neurobiology, cognitive dysfunction, and treatment of schizophrenia and depression, integrating both preclinical animal models and human clinical research.

Dr. Featherstone’s work examines the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive impairments associated with psychiatric illness and seeks to identify novel therapeutic strategies to improve cognitive and functional outcomes. His research combines behavioral neuroscience, neuropsychopharmacology, and electrophysiology, with particular expertise in EEG and event-related potential (ERP) biomarkers for psychiatric drug discovery and translational neuroscience.

Current projects investigate glutamatergic signaling pathways, NMDA receptor function, and synaptic mechanisms that contribute to cognitive deficits in neuropsychiatric disorders. By integrating behavioral, molecular, and electrophysiological approaches across animal and human studies, his research aims to advance the development of mechanism-based treatments that improve both symptoms and cognitive functioning in individuals with serious mental illness.

• Thompson, Paul
• Toga, Arthur
• Peterson, Bradley
• Lerman, Caryn
• Levitt, Pat
• Leventhal, Adam