Stephen W. Porges, Ph. D., is a Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University, where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium. He is also a Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina and a Professor Emeritus at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland.

He was president of the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences. He was a former recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He has published over 400 peer-reviewed papers across several disciplines, including anesthesiology, biomedical engineering, critical care medicine, ergonomics, exercise physiology, gerontology, neurology, neuroscience, obstetrics, pediatrics, psychiatry, psychology, psychometrics, space medicine, and substance abuse. In 1994, he proposed the Polyvagal Theory, which links the evolution of the mammalian autonomic nervous system to social behavior and emphasizes the importance of the physiological state in the expression of behavioral problems and psychiatric disorders. The theory is leading to innovative treatments based on insights into the mechanisms mediating symptoms observed in several behavioral, psychiatric, and physical disorders.

He is the author of The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-regulation (Norton, 2011), The Pocket Guide to the Polyvagal Theory: The Transformative Power of Feeling Safe (Norton, 2017), co-editor of Clinical Applications of the Polyvagal Theory: The Emergence of Polyvagal-Informed Therapies (Norton, 2018) and author of Polyvagal Safety: Attachment, Communication, Self-Regulation (Norton 2021). Dr. Porges is the creator of a music-based intervention, the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP), which therapists use to improve social engagement, language processing, and state regulation, as well as to reduce hearing sensitivities.

Professors, Scientists, Research & Exploration Psychology, Neuroscience, Stress Management, Relationships, Authors, Alcohol & Drug Abuse,