Sam Chamberlain

Sam Chamberlain is Professor of Psychiatry at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton.

Prof Chamberlain leads the Research Clinic for Impulsive and Compulsive Disorders - a joint collaboration between the University of Southampton and Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust. The Service is the first of its kind in the UK, and provides specialist assessment and treatment expertise for adults with mental health conditions including: gambling disorder, hair pulling disorder (trichotillomania), skin picking (excoriation) disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and compulsive stealing. The Service considers referrals from local secondary mental health teams.

Prof Chamberlain’s research focuses on the neurobiology and treatment of impulsive, compulsive, and behaviourally-addictive disorders. These are conditions in which people have difficulty resisting urges and/or habits. In particular, the research involves three main aims:

developing and validating clinical tools
measuring cognitive problems and brain circuits that contribute (including vulnerability markers)
improving existing treatments and developing new ones.
He is co-author of the following books: Clinical Guide to Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders (Oxford University Press), Why Can't I Stop? Reclaiming Your Life from a Behavioral Addiction (Johns Hopkins University Press), and Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (American Psychiatric Association Publishing). His research is funded by the Wellcome Trust through a Clinical Fellowship. Prof Chamberlain is co-founder of the National UK Research Network on Behavioural Addictions (NUK-BA).