Jessica (Jess) Peters, PhD is a clinical psychologist broadly interested in biological and behavioral mechanisms underlying the development and exacerbation of maladaptive impulsivity, self-destructive behavior, interpersonal dysfunction, and borderline personality disorder (BPD) in adolescents and adults.
Her current work focuses on how typical changes in ovarian steroid hormones across the menstrual cycle may increase vulnerability to emotion dysregulation (particularly irritability/anger) for a subset of menstruating people, resulting in premenstrual disorders (such as PMDD) and exacerbating BPD symptom expression. Recognizing that multiple different types of neural hormone sensitivities drive these symptom patterns, she co-developed the Dimensional Affective Sensitivity to Hormones across the Menstrual Cycle (DASH-MC) framework to integrate these findings into an initial transdiagnostic model. Her lab is currently working to refine this model, develop novel methods to improve the study of premenstrual disoders, and to translate these findings into formats useful for patients and clinicians.
Dr. Peters also engages in research, clinical work, supervision, and training around working with LGBTQ+ teens and young adults.
| Stumper A, Thomas SA, Zaidi ZA, Fydenkevez MA, Maron M, Wolff JC, Peters JR. "Correlates of Menarcheal Age in a Psychiatric Sample of Adolescents." The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, vol. 212, no. 2, 2024, pp. 129-131. |
| Wallace GT, Brick LA, Provost EM, Peters JR, Miller IW, Schatten HT. "Daily Levels and Dynamic Metrics of Affective-Cognitive Constructs Associate With Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviours in Adults After Psychiatric Hospitalization." Clinical psychology & psychotherapy, vol. 31, no. 2, 2024, pp. e2982. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Schmalenberger, Katja M., Eng, Ashley G., Stumper, Allison, Martel, Michelle M., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A. "Dimensional Affective Sensitivity to Hormones across the Menstrual Cycle (DASH-MC): A transdiagnostic framework for ovarian steroid influences on psychopathology." Molecular Psychiatry, 2024. |
| Thomas, Sarah A., Thompson, Elizabeth C., Peters, Jessica R., Micalizzi, Lauren, Meisel, Samuel N., Maron, Micaela, Ryan, Sarah K., Wolff, Jennifer C. "Investigating Substance Use as a Coping Strategy Among Adolescent Psychiatric Inpatients: A Comparative Analysis Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic." Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 2024. |
| Tauseef HA, Schmalenberger KM, Barone JC, Ross JM, Peters JR, Girdler SS, Eisenlohr-Moul TA. "Is trait rumination associated with affective reactivity to the menstrual cycle? A prospective analysis." Psychological Medicine, vol. 54, no. 8, 2024, pp. 1824-1834. |
| Mereish EH, Peters JR, Brick LAD, Killam MA, Yen S. "A daily diary study of minority stressors, suicidal ideation, nonsuicidal self-injury ideation, and affective mechanisms among sexual and gender minority youth." Journal of psychopathology and clinical science, vol. 132, no. 4, 2023, pp. 372-384. |
| Fineberg SK, Choi EY, Shapiro-Thompson R, Dhaliwal K, Neustadter E, Sakheim M, Null K, Trujillo-Diaz D, Rondeau J, Pittaro GF, Peters JR, Corlett PR, Krystal JH. "A pilot randomized controlled trial of ketamine in Borderline Personality Disorder." Neuropsychopharmacology, vol. 48, no. 7, 2023, pp. 991-999. |
| Sharkey, Katherine M, Stumper, Allison, Peters, Jessica R. "Applying Advanced Menstrual Cycle Affective Science Methods to Study Mood Regulation and Sleep." Sleep, 2023. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Stumper, Allison, Schmalenberger, Katja M., Taubman, Andy J., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A. "Improving rigor through gender inclusivity in reproductive psychiatric science." Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology, vol. 16, 2023, pp. 100194. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Crowe, Michael L., Morgan, Theresa, Zimmerman, Mark, Sharp, Carla, Grilo, Carlos M., Sanislow, Charles A., Shea, M. Tracie, Zanarini, Mary C., McGlashan, Thomas H., Morey, Leslie C., Skodol, Andrew E., Yen, Shirley. "Borderline personality disorder symptom networks across adolescent and adult clinical samples: examining symptom centrality and replicability." Psychological Medicine, 2022, pp. 1-8. |
| Masland, Sara R., Victor, Sarah E., Peters, Jessica R., Fitzpatrick, Skye, Dixon-Gordon, Katherine L., Bettis, Alexandra H., Navarre, Kellyann M., Rizvi, Shireen L. "Destigmatizing Borderline Personality Disorder: A Call to Action for Psychological Science." Perspectives on Psychological Science, vol. 18, no. 2, 2022, pp. 445-460. |
| Schoenleber, Michelle, Beltran, Emily, Peters, Jessica R., Anestis, Michael D. "Association between shame aversion and ruminative retribution: Evidence for moderation by externalization of blame and control." Motivation and Emotion, 2021. |
| Yen, Shirley, Peters, Jessica R., Nishar, Shivani, Grilo, Carlos M., Sanislow, Charles A., Shea, M. Tracie, Zanarini, Mary C., McGlashan, Thomas H., Morey, Leslie C., Skodol, Andrew E. "Association of Borderline Personality Disorder Criteria With Suicide Attempts: Findings From the Collaborative Longitudinal Study of Personality Disorders Over 10 Years of Follow-up." JAMA Psychiatry, vol. 78, no. 2, 2021, pp. 187. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Owens, Sarah A., Schmalenberger, Katja M., Eisenlohr‐Moul, Tory A. "Differential effects of the menstrual cycle on reactive and proactive aggression in borderline personality disorder." Aggressive Behavior, 2020. |
| Yen S, Ranney ML, Krek M, Peters JR, Mereish EH, Tezanos KM, Kahler CW, Solomon J, Beard C, Spirito A. "Skills to Enhance Positivity in Suicidal Adolescents: Results from a Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial." The Journal of Positive Psychology, vol. 15, no. 3, 2020, pp. 1-14. |
| Geiger, Paul J., Herr, Nathaniel R., Peters, Jessica R. "Deficits in mindfulness account for the link between borderline personality features and maladaptive humor styles." Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 139, 2019, pp. 19-23. |
| Peters JR, Eisenlohr-Moul TA. "Ovarian Hormones as a Source of Fluctuating Biological Vulnerability in Borderline Personality Disorder." Current Psychiatry Reports, vol. 21, no. 11, 2019, pp. 109. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Mereish, Ethan H., Krek, Maya A., Chuong, Adam, Ranney, Megan L., Solomon, Joel, Spirito, Anthony, Yen, Shirley. "Sexual orientation differences in non-suicidal self-injury, suicidality, and psychosocial factors among an inpatient psychiatric sample of adolescents." Psychiatry Research, vol. 284, 2019, pp. 112664. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Owens, Sarah A, Schmalenberger, Katja M, Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory Anne. "Differential Effects of the Menstrual Cycle on Reactive and Proactive Aggression in Borderline Personality Disorder." BioRxiv, 2018. |
| Cassiello-Robbins, Clair, Wilner, Julianne G., Peters, Jessica R., Bentley, Kate H., Sauer-Zavala, Shannon. "Elucidating the relationships between shame, anger, and self-destructive behaviors: The role of aversive responses to emotions." Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 2018. |
| Dawson, Danyelle N., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Paulson, Julia L., Peters, Jessica R., Rubinow, David R., Girdler, Susan S. "Emotion-related impulsivity and rumination predict the perimenstrual severity and trajectory of symptoms in women with a menstrually related mood disorder." Journal of Clinical Psychology, vol. 74, no. 4, 2018, pp. 579-593. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Walsh, Erin C., Derefinko, Karen J. "Exploring the pathophysiology of emotion-based impulsivity: The roles of the sympathetic nervous system and hostile reactivity." Psychiatry Research, vol. 267, 2018, pp. 368-375. |
| Mereish EH, Peters JR, Yen S. "Minority Stress and Relational Mechanisms of Suicide among Sexual Minorities: Subgroup Differences in the Associations Between Heterosexist Victimization, Shame, Rejection Sensitivity, and Suicide Risk." Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 2018. |
| Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Schmalenberger, Katja M., Owens, Sarah A., Peters, Jessica R., Dawson, Danyelle N., Girdler, Susan S. "Perimenstrual exacerbation of symptoms in borderline personality disorder: evidence from multilevel models and the Carolina Premenstrual Assessment Scoring System." Psychological Medicine, 2018, pp. 1-11. |
| Eisenlohr-Moul TA, Schmalenberger KM, Owens SA, Peters JR, Dawson DN, Girdler SS. "Perimenstrual exacerbation of symptoms in borderline personality disorder: evidence from multilevel models and the Carolina Premenstrual Assessment Scoring System." Psychological Medicine, vol. 48, no. 12, 2018, pp. 2100. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Mereish, Ethan H., Solomon, Joel B., Spirito, Anthony S., Yen, Shirley. "Suicide Ideation in Adolescents Following Inpatient Hospitalization: Examination of Intensity and Lability Over 6 Months." Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 2018. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Chester, David S., Walsh, Erin C., DeWall, C. Nathan, Baer, Ruth A. "The rewarding nature of provocation-focused rumination in women with borderline personality disorder: a preliminary fMRI investigation." Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, vol. 5, no. 1, 2018. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Upton, Brian T., Talavera, Nina A., Folsom, Jacob J., Baer, Ruth A. "Characteristics of Repetitive Thought Associated with Borderline Personality Features: A Multimodal Investigation of Ruminative Content and Style." Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, vol. 39, no. 3, 2017, pp. 456-466. |
| Dixon-Gordon KL, Peters JR, Fertuck EA, Yen S. "Emotional Processes in Borderline Personality Disorder: An Update for Clinical Practice." Journal of Psychotherapy Integration, vol. 27, no. 4, 2017, pp. 425-438. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Derefinko, Karen J., Lynam, Donald R. "Negative Urgency Accounts for the Association Between Borderline Personality Features and Intimate Partner Violence in Young Men." Journal of Personality Disorders, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 16-25. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Geiger, Paul J. "Borderline personality disorder and self-conscious affect: Too much shame but not enough guilt?." Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, vol. 7, no. 3, 2016, pp. 303-308. |
| Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Peters, Jessica R., Pond, Richard S., DeWall, C. Nathan. "Both Trait and State Mindfulness Predict Lower Aggressiveness via Anger Rumination: a Multilevel Mediation Analysis." Mindfulness, vol. 7, no. 3, 2016, pp. 713-726. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Smart, Laura M. "Dispositional mindfulness and rejection sensitivity: The critical role of nonjudgment." Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 93, 2016, pp. 125-129. |
| Derefinko, Karen J., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Peters, Jessica R., Roberts, Walter, Walsh, Erin C., Milich, Richard, Lynam, Donald R. "Physiological response to reward and extinction predicts alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use two years later." Drug and Alcohol Dependence, vol. 163, 2016, pp. S29-S36. |
| Derefinko, Karen J., Charnigo, Richard J., Peters, Jessica R., Adams, Zachary W., Milich, Richard, Lynam, Donald R. "Substance Use Trajectories From Early Adolescence Through the Transition to College." Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, vol. 77, no. 6, 2016, pp. 924-935. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Smart, Laura M., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Geiger, Paul J., Smith, Gregory T., Baer, Ruth A. "Anger Rumination as a Mediator of the Relationship Between Mindfulness and Aggression: The Utility of a Multidimensional Mindfulness Model." Journal of Clinical Psychology, vol. 71, no. 9, 2015, pp. 871-884. |
| Geiger, Paul J., Peters, Jessica R., Baer, Ruth A. "Cognitive distortions under cognitive load mediate the relationship between severity of borderline personality features and goal-interfering emotion dysregulation." Journal of Experimental Psychopathology, vol. 6, no. 4, 2015, pp. 389-397. |
| Smart, Laura M., Peters, Jessica R., Baer, Ruth A. "Development and Validation of a Measure of Self-Critical Rumination." Assessment, vol. 23, no. 3, 2015, pp. 321-332. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Smart, Laura M., Baer, Ruth A. "Dysfunctional Responses to Emotion Mediate the Cross-Sectional Relationship Between Rejection Sensitivity and Borderline Personality Features." Journal of Personality Disorders, vol. 29, no. 2, 2015, pp. 231-240. |
| Chester, David S., DeWall, C. Nathan, Derefinko, Karen J., Estus, Steven, Lynam, Donald R., Peters, Jessica R., Jiang, Yang. "Looking for reward in all the wrong places: dopamine receptor gene polymorphisms indirectly affect aggression through sensation-seeking." Social Neuroscience, vol. 11, no. 5, 2015, pp. 487-494. |
| Geiger, Paul J., Boggero, Ian A., Brake, C. Alex, Caldera, Carolina A., Combs, Hannah L., Peters, Jessica R., Baer, Ruth A. "Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Older Adults: a Review of the Effects on Physical and Emotional Well-Being." Mindfulness, vol. 7, no. 2, 2015, pp. 296-307. |
| Chester, David S., DeWall, C. Nathan, Derefinko, Karen J., Estus, Steven, Peters, Jessica R., Lynam, Donald R., Jiang, Yang. "Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) genotype predicts greater aggression through impulsive reactivity to negative affect." Behavioural Brain Research, vol. 283, 2015, pp. 97-101. |
| Lee, Dustin C., Peters, Jessica R., Adams, Zachary W., Milich, Richard, Lynam, Donald R. "Specific dimensions of impulsivity are differentially associated with daily and non-daily cigarette smoking in young adults." Addictive Behaviors, vol. 46, 2015, pp. 82-85. |
| Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Peters, Jessica R., Chamberlain, Kaitlyn D., Rodriguez, Marcus A. "Weekly Fluctuations in Nonjudging Predict Borderline Personality Disorder Feature Expression in Women." Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, vol. 38, no. 1, 2015, pp. 149-157. |
| Roberts, Walter, Peters, Jessica R., Adams, Zachary W., Lynam, Donald R., Milich, Richard. "Identifying the facets of impulsivity that explain the relation between ADHD symptoms and substance use in a nonclinical sample." Addictive Behaviors, vol. 39, no. 8, 2014, pp. 1272-1277. |
| Derefinko, Karen J., Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Walsh, Erin C., Adams, Zachary W., Lynam, Donald R. "Relations Between Trait Impulsivity, Behavioral Impulsivity, Physiological Arousal, and Risky Sexual Behavior Among Young Men." Archives of Sexual Behavior, vol. 43, no. 6, 2014, pp. 1149-1158. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Geiger, Paul J., Smart, Laura M., Baer, Ruth A. "Shame and borderline personality features: The potential mediating role of anger and anger rumination." Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, vol. 5, no. 1, 2014, pp. 1-9. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Pond, Richard S., DeWall, C. Nathan. "The downside of being sexually restricted: The effects of sociosexual orientation on relationships between jealousy, rejection, and anger." Journal of Research in Personality, vol. 51, 2014, pp. 18-22. |
| Geiger, Paul J., Peters, Jessica R., Baer, Ruth A. "Using a measure of cognitive distortion to examine the relationship between thought suppression and borderline personality features: A multi-method investigation." Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 59, 2014, pp. 54-59. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Upton, Brian T., Baer, Ruth A. "Brief Report: Relationships Between Facets of Impulsivity and Borderline Personality Features." Journal of Personality Disorders, vol. 27, no. 4, 2013, pp. 547-552. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Upton, Brian T., Baer, Ruth A. "Nonjudgment as a moderator of the relationship between present-centered awareness and borderline features: Synergistic interactions in mindfulness assessment." Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 55, no. 1, 2013, pp. 24-28. |
| Geiger, Paul J., Peters, Jessica R., Sauer-Zavala, Shannon E., Baer, Ruth A. "Relationships Among Maladaptive Cognitive Content, Dysfunctional Cognitive Processes, and Borderline Personality Features." Journal of Personality Disorders, vol. 27, no. 4, 2013, pp. 457-464. |
| Baer, Ruth A., Peters, Jessica R., Eisenlohr-Moul, Tory A., Geiger, Paul J., Sauer, Shannon E. "Emotion-related cognitive processes in borderline personality disorder: A review of the empirical literature." Clinical Psychology Review, vol. 32, no. 5, 2012, pp. 359-369. |
| Baer, Ruth A., Lykins, Emily L.B., Peters, Jessica R. "Mindfulness and self-compassion as predictors of psychological wellbeing in long-term meditators and matched nonmeditators." The Journal of Positive Psychology, vol. 7, no. 3, 2012, pp. 230-238. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Erisman, Shannon M., Upton, Brian T., Baer, Ruth A., Roemer, Lizabeth. "A Preliminary Investigation of the Relationships Between Dispositional Mindfulness and Impulsivity." Mindfulness, vol. 2, no. 4, 2011, pp. 228-235. |
| Peters, Jessica R., Vallie, Bonnie, Difronzo, Marisa, Donaldson, S. Tiffany. "Role of dopamine D1 receptors in novelty seeking in adult female Long-Evans rats." Brain Research Bulletin, vol. 74, no. 4, 2007, pp. 232-236. |
Current Awards Include:
Completed Awards Include:
| Year | Degree | Institution |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | PhD | University of Kentucky |
| 2012 | MS | University of Kentucky |
| 2005 | BS | University of Massachusetts, Boston |
| T32 Research Fellow in Child Mental Health | Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior | 2015-2018 | Providence, RI |
| Predoctoral Internship | Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior | 2014-2015 |
Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Women's Special Interest Group, 2021 Early Career Award
North American Society for Study of Personality Disorders 2020 Early Career Investigator Award
Association for Psychological Science 2020 Rising Star
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Barredo, Jennifer | Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Research) |
| Brick, Leslie Ann | Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Research) |
| Dalrymple Gaudiano, Kristy | Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Clinician Educator |
| Kudinova, Anastacia | Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Research) |
| Mereish, Ethan | Adjunct Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences |
| Morgan, Theresa | Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior |
| Pearlstein, Teri | Professor Emerita of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Professor Emerita of Medicine |
| Schatten, Heather | Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Research) |
| Sharkey, Katherine | Associate Dean for Gender Equity, Associate Professor of Medicine, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior |
| Thomas, Sarah | Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Research) |
| Yen, Shirley | Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior |
Clinical Advisory Board Member for the International Association for Premenstrual Disorders (IAPMD)
Board of Directors, Communications and Outreach Director for the North American Society for Study of Personality Disorders (NASSPD)
Advisory Board Member for the Office of Women in Medicine and Science (OWIMS) at Brown University
Editorial Board of Behaviour Research and Therapy, Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment
| Clinical Psychologist | Rhode Island | 2018- | #PS01687 |
Dr. Peters is a member of the Brown Psychology Consortium adult track training faculty and serves as a research mentor for predoctoral psychology residents. She also provides instruction to psychology and psychiatry residents and fellows on topics including peer supervison, personality disorders, sexuality and gender affirming care, and working with high risk patients.
