Paul Wender Best Paper in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry Award

Award History:

The American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) presents the Paul Wender Best Paper in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry Award to a recipient who has been published in the past year in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Known as the “Dean of ADHD” by his colleagues, Paul H. Wender, MD, was a pioneer in identifying and treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. A researcher and clinician who treated patients with ADHD for many years, he offered insights into the progression of ADHD, as well as dietary, drug, and psychological treatments. He was the author of the classic handbook on the subject, ADHD: Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adults.

Wender was involved in the study of ADHD for over thirty years and wrote the first monograph on the disorder in 1971 (Minimal Brain Dysfunction in Children). In this monograph, he advanced the hypotheses that the disorder was genetic in origin and was mediated by decreased activity in dopaminergic systems in the brain. Because he found education of the parents of ADHD children played a substantial role in treatment, he described the symptoms, the causes, and the management of children with ADHD in a book published in 1974, The Hyperactive Child. The 4th edition, ADHD in Children and Adults, was published in 2000 and contains information for ADHD adults about how accurate diagnosis can be made and how ADHD in adults is best treated. He and his colleagues discovered that ADHD in adults was a recognizable disorder. They initiated studies of ADHD in adults beginning in 1976 and have conducted extensive research in this area since that time. He wrote the first monograph on ADHD in adults (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Adults) in 1995.

Eligibility / Submission Requirements:

• Papers published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry from January 2026 - Present
• Must be original reports or meta-analyses on patient-relevant research in clinical psychopharmacology
• The top 5 most downloaded papers from 2026 will automatically be considered
• Eligible for both peer and self-nomination

The recipient receives a $1,000 stipend upon attending the 2027 ASCP Annual Meeting.

2027 Submission Deadline: To be announced.