Anat Brunstein Klomek

Brunstein-Klomek studied behavioural sciences at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.[1] She moved to Bar-Ilan University for her graduate studies, where she completed both a master's degree and doctorate in clinical psychology.[1] Her doctoral research was supervised by Israel Orbach and considered the self-representation of suicidal adolescents. Brunstein-Klomek was a research fellow in the laboratory of Madelyn Gould in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute.[1] There she was trained by Laura Mufson in interpersonal psychotherapy for adolescents.[2] She worked with the medical psychologist Barbara Stanley on psychosocial treatments for adolescent Americans with depression.[3]

After completing her postdoctoral training, Brunstein-Klomek returned to Israel, where she joined the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. She has shown that frequent exposure to bullying can increase a young person's risk of suicidal ideation and depression.[4] She has described cyberbullying as a major public health problem, and proposed that school students should be taught both resilience and how to conduct themselves.[5] She has argued that all members of society can play a role in bullying prevention, and that adults and parents in particular can be transformative for victimised children.[6] Brunstein-Klomek has used interpersonal psychotherapy to support adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and specific learning differences.[7][8]

Since 2015 Brunstein-Klomek has been involved with the Israel National Suicide Prevention plan, through which she has worked on programmes for Palestinian and Israeli people.[9] The programme has helped teachers, parents and counsellors have conversations with school students.[10]

Brunstein-Klomek has investigated the impact of internet use in people diagnosed with eating disorders.[11] As part of this work, Brunstein-Klomek showed that despite people with eating disorders accessing pro-ana websites, it is possible to redirect them to useful websites which can help.[12]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Brunstein-Klomek became concerned about the provision of mental health services to at-risk groups. Writing in The Lancet, Brunstein-Klomek called for suicide prevention to be integrated into the global response to the pandemic. She argued that during and after the extended periods of mandatory social isolation at-risk populations may be at a greater risk of suicidal ideology.[13]

• Brunstein Klomek, Anat; Marrocco, Frank; Kleinman, Marjorie; Schonfeld, Irvin S; Gould, Madelyn S (January 2007). "Bullying, depression, and suicidality in adolescents". Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 46 (1): 40–49. doi:10.1097/01.chi.0000242237.84925.18. PMID 17195728.
• Sourander, Andre; Brunstein Klomek, Anat; Ikonen, Maria; Lindroos, Jarna; Luntamo, Terhi; Koskelainen, Merja; Ristkari, Terja; Helenius, Hans (1 July 2010). "Psychosocial Risk Factors Associated With Cyberbullying Among Adolescents". Archives of General Psychiatry. 67 (7): 720–8. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2010.79. PMID 20603453.
• Klomek, Anat Brunstein; Sourander, Andre; Gould, Madelyn (May 2010). "The Association of Suicide and Bullying in Childhood to Young Adulthood: A Review of Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Research Findings". The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry. 55 (5): 282–288. doi:10.1177/070674371005500503. PMID 20482954. S2CID 23962627.