About

Benjamin Marx is an Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Boston University. His research interests are mainly in political economy and development. He studies the determinants of political accountability, state capacity, and voting behavior in developing countries, with work conducted in countries including Kenya, Senegal, Uganda, and Indonesia. Additionally, his research explores the political economy of religion, aiming to better understand the interplay between religious institutions, politics, and culture. He is also interested in discrimination and the political economy of urban poverty. Benjamin Marx completed his PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2018.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Psychiatry
• Clinical psychology
• Psychology
• Internal medicine
• Medical emergency
• Political Science
• Environmental health
• Biology
• Nursing
• Physical therapy
• Family medicine
• Psychoanalysis

Selected publications

• Toward a precision medicine treatment model for posttraumatic stress disorder

  Journal of Traumatic Stress · 2026-04-10

  articleSenior author

  Multiple evidence-based treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are available, yet they do not benefit all recipients equally due to partial response, early dropout, and persistent symptoms. Despite this, clinicians and patients lack empirically grounded guidance for selecting among treatment options. This commentary argues for the timeliness and clinical promise of a precision medicine approach to treatment research, going beyond estimations of average treatment effects to model the optimal treatment for a given individual and their context. We outline three scientific priorities for progress toward clinically usable decision models: (a) prioritizing heterogeneity in studying treatment response; (b) accounting for provider-, clinic-, and system-level influences along with the patient's social and material context; and (c) increasing rigor and harmonization in outcome measurement. Advancing these priorities will require coordinated efforts to assemble larger and higher-quality PTSD treatment data sources; we highlight several actionable strategies for doing so. To better address the needs of all trauma survivors, the field must not only develop and study effective treatments but also take cohesive steps to understand how, when, and to whom those treatments are best delivered.

  PublisherDOI

• Narcissistic traits predict suicide risk because personality traits predict suicide risk: A commentary on “The relationship between narcissism and suicidality”.

  Clinical Psychology Science and Practice · 2026-03-01

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• The Correlates of Self-reported Abusive Violence Among Post-9/11 U.S. Military Veterans

  OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) · 2026-02-27

  other
  Publisher

• Mitigating Suicide Risk During the Military-to-Civilian Transition: The VA Veteran Sponsorship Initiative

  International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · 2026-04-17

  articleOpen access

  A suicide epidemic exists among young U.S. veterans, with risk especially elevated in the first year of transition for the 200,000 servicemembers exiting the military annually. The VA Veteran Sponsorship Initiative (VSI) is a public-private-partnership between federal and community partners that aims to decrease suicides by providing a VA-certified volunteer peer sponsor and connection to community services. Onward Ops is a key community-based national program that enrolls, matches and manages the relationship between servicemembers and sponsors. A prior randomized controlled trial showed that the effectiveness of community interventions can be enhanced when augmented by an Onward Ops sponsor. In preparation for national implementation, we conducted a quasi-experimental, matched-cohort pilot to evaluate the feasibility of an adapted VSI protocol and then assessed effectiveness. The adaptations were executed using the Framework for Reporting Adaptations and Modifications-Enhanced between April 2021 and April 2023. The formative results supported the feasibility of the adaptations to enable proactive enrollment on military installations and expand data infrastructure, partnerships, peer sponsors, and VA clinical services. We then assessed the effectiveness for outcomes not studied in the original VSI trial for active-duty soldiers who enrolled between April and December 2023. After nearest-neighbor matching, the sample included 551 VSI participants and 551 soldiers transitioning as usual. The point-probability contrast or risk differences from the conditional logistic regression model indicated that the VSI caused a statistically significant increase in VA primary care utilization of 0.198 and a statistically significant decrease in suicide attempts of -0.019, both assessed 10 months post-military discharge. The study demonstrated the utility of public-private-partnerships, peer-sponsorship programs and enhanced VA services to support servicemembers during transition.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Reciprocal associations between PTSD symptoms and functioning over time among veteran men and women.

  Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science · 2026-03-02

  articleSenior author

  Psychological distress and functional impairment are key diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, most studies focus on PTSD symptom distress with minimal attention on functioning. The aim of this study was to investigate the temporal dynamics of PTSD symptom severity and global functional impairment, as well as specific areas of functioning (e.g., family, work, parenting, self-care). A gender-balanced sample of 1,461 returning veteran men and women completed measures of PTSD symptom severity and functional impairment at five timepoints between 2010 and 2019. Latent growth curve modeling revealed that during the 18-year period following return from deployment, PTSD symptoms and global functioning showed statistically significant improvement among both men and women, although women experienced more modest improvements in both constructs. There was significant heterogeneity in initial level and rate of change among both men and women, but on average the changes were modest in terms of their clinical meaningfulness. Among subdomains of functioning, women and men exhibited different patterns of change, with only women experiencing improvements in some areas (family, parenting), only men experiencing improvements in some areas (work, romantic relationships), and both experiencing improvements in friendship. Women experienced modest worsening in self-care functioning over time. Parallel process growth modeling indicated that over time, and across virtually all domains of functioning, worse initial symptom severity was associated with greater functioning improvement, and vice versa. Results suggest that interventions directly targeting functioning could be as effective as targeting PTSD symptoms in improving veterans' psychosocial outcomes and enhancing adaptive recovery processes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

  PublisherDOI

• Comparing dropout from cognitive processing therapy versus prolongedexposure: Results from a randomized clinical trial.

  Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology · 2026-03-01

  articleOpen access

  OBJECTIVE: Dropout from evidence-based psychotherapies for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; e.g., cognitive processing therapy [CPT] and prolonged exposure [PE]) remains a problem, with rates around 38%-51% in routine care settings. Research is needed to characterize predictors and timing of dropout to inform intervention efforts. Using data from the largest randomized controlled trial of CPT and PE to date, we examined the timing and predictors of dropout, including sociodemographic and psychosocial variables. METHOD: Participants (N = 916; average age = 45.2; 79.9% male; 64.4% White) were U.S. veterans with PTSD who were randomized to receive PE (n = 455) or CPT (n = 461). Participants completed measures to assess demographic characteristics, PTSD symptoms, depression symptoms, quality of life, substance use, and treatment expectations and preferences. Dropout was defined as completing less than 12 sessions or completing fewer sessions than required based on the study protocol for early responders. RESULTS: Dropout was significantly higher in PE (52.31%) than in CPT (45.77%). Survival analyses indicated better retention in CPT over time and suggested that this group difference became significant starting after Session 3. Slower reduction in PTSD symptom severity was related to dropout in CPT, but not in PE. Regression models showed that veterans who were younger, Black, and service-connected for PTSD were more likely to drop out. CONCLUSIONS: Few pretreatment predictors were associated with dropout, indicating the need for additional research, such as using more intensive, longitudinal methods with time-varying predictors during treatment, to elucidate reasons for dropout from these first-line trauma psychotherapies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

  PublisherDOI

• Associations between Physical Activity and Metabolic Syndrome among Veterans with and without Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

  Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine · 2025-11-06

  article

  ABSTRACT Introduction Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with an increased risk for metabolic syndrome (MetS). PTSD is also associated with low physical activity, an important determinant of cardiovascular and metabolic health. This study examined cross-sectional associations between MetS, PTSD, and self-reported global physical activity and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) to determine the extent to which PTSD and global physical activity and MVPA independently contribute to MetS. Methods Participants ( n = 191) were recruited from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study of veterans at the Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine associations among MetS, PTSD symptoms, global physical activity, and MVPA. MetS and contributing risk factors (i.e., obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and high blood glucose) were modeled as the dependent variables; PTSD symptoms, global physical activity, and MVPA as the independent variables (step 1); and age, sex, race, ethnicity, and nicotine and alcohol as the covariates (step 2). Results A significant interaction between PTSD symptoms and MVPA was observed for MetS (odds ratio (OR) = 0.92, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.86–0.99, P = 0.02), such that greater PTSD severity was associated with higher odds of MetS in insufficiently active participants, but not active individuals. A similar significant interaction between PTSD symptoms and MVPA was observed for obesity (OR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.90–1.00, P = 0.05). Greater levels of global physical activity were associated with significantly lower odds of meeting the criteria for obesity (OR = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.35–0.85, P < 0.01) and high triglycerides (OR = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.39–1.00, P < 0.05). Greater MVPA was associated with significantly lower odds of having low-level high-density lipoproteins (OR = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.20–0.89, P < 0.05). Conclusions Higher levels of both global physical activity and MVPA were associated with a lower risk of MetS, obesity, and dyslipidemia in military veterans. Additionally, this study provides preliminary evidence that MVPA moderates the relationship between PTSD, MetS, and obesity.

  PublisherDOI

• Development and evaluation of a centralized assessment hub for the clinician-administered PTSD Scale for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (CAPS-5).

  Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice and Policy · 2025-06-02 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  OBJECTIVE: (Weathers et al., 2013) remotely via telephone. METHOD: = 200) were used to calculate interrater reliability. RESULTS: = .39) agreement. CONCLUSIONS: training protocol was used successfully in the largest PTSD clinical trial to date. The use of a centralized assessment hub ensured highly accurate assessment that likely could not have been achieved using site-based raters across multiple sites. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

  PublisherDOI

• Acceptability and feasibility of the clinician-administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 training simulator.

  PubMed · 2025-07-17

  article

  OBJECTIVE: , posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). To address the high demand for training in the CAPS-5, we developed the CAPS-5 Training Simulator (CAPSim), an online program in which learners administer the CAPS-5 to lifelike virtual PTSD patients and receive feedback on their performance. METHOD: We created three virtual standardized PTSD patients who respond verbally to learners' spoken or typed prompts. Complexity and availability of in-course feedback varied across patients. The program was then made available to interested learners, and data on program use and user performance were collected to determine acceptability and feasibility. RESULTS: = 3,022), most (83.6%) completed it. Although CAPS-5 familiarity varied, more than half of the users (58.3%) reported being moderately familiar with the CAPS-5 at baseline. Administration and scoring accuracy varied by virtual patient and by CAPS-5 item, with overall accuracy ranging from near perfect to 77.1% incorrect. Whereas the initial symptom prompts were delivered verbatim 76.2% of the time, in-sequence and additional required prompts were administered with less accuracy (46.0% and 39.2%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The CAPSim is an innovative method for training CAPS-5 learners with various skill levels. The CAPSim can identify specific administrative and scoring challenges and provide personalized feedback in a manner that appears acceptable to learners. The CAPSim has promise to meet the high demand for CAPS-5 training. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

  PublisherDOI

• Predicting firearm suicide among US Army veterans transitioning from active service

  Nature Mental Health · 2025-12-31

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Terence M. Keane

  Boston University

  521 shared

• Denise M. Sloan

  Boston University

  318 shared

• Michelle J. Bovin

  VA Boston Healthcare System

  213 shared

• Lawrence J. Shampine

  Duke University Hospital

  157 shared

• Paula P. Schnurr

  National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

  154 shared

• Jeffrey Lieberman

  Columbia University

  130 shared

• Christine Hulette

  Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative

  130 shared

• Warachal Faison

  Pfizer (United States)

  130 shared

Education

• Ph.D.

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  2018