Jeffrey L. Binder, Ph.D., ABPP
Individual Therapy • Time-Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy
Board Certified in Clinical Psychology • Fellow, American Psychological Association • Fellow, American Academy of Clinical Psychology
Dr. Binder offers a thoughtful, collaborative approach to psychotherapy grounded in decades of clinical experience, teaching, and scholarship in psychodynamic and relational psychotherapy.
He strives to empathically engage with people struggling with anxiety, depression, loneliness, relationship difficulties, self-doubt, life transitions, and long-standing interpersonal patterns that can interfere with personal fulfillment and satisfying relationships.
Drawing on decades of clinical expertise, teaching, and psychotherapy research, he offers a deeply collaborative, insight-oriented approach that helps people overcome emotional suffering, strengthen relationships, and create lasting personal change.
Specialties
Dr. Binder
Books
Patients
Teletherapy
Dr. Binder uses a combination of psychodynamic, interpersonal, and cognitive treatment approaches, tailored to your personal situation. At your first appointment, he will begin to help you tell your personal story.
Dr. Binder provides a warm, respectful therapeutic relationship in which patients feel understood rather than judged. His therapy is tailored to the individual and focuses not only on symptom relief, but also on helping people gain deeper self-understanding, improve relationships, strengthen resilience, and develop more satisfying ways of living.
His approach emphasizes a detailed exploration of your personal journey through life. This therapeutic dialogue will include questioning previously unquestioned assumptions and expectations about yourself and other people that may have contributed to the difficulties with which you now struggle.
The self-understanding gained through this collaborative work will provide a guide to implementing practical change strategies for achieving a more satisfying and fulfilling future.
Board Certified in
Clinical Psychology
Board certified in Clinical Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology and Fellow of the American Academy of Clinical Psychology, Dr. Binder is widely recognized for his contributions to contemporary psychodynamic psychotherapy and for his commitment to helping patients create meaningful and lasting change.
APA Fellow
Dr. Binder is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. Fewer than 5% of the members of the Association have been awarded the status of “Fellow.” This distinction formally recognizes significant work that has had national and international impact. It is one of the highest honors that the APA bestows on its members. Dr. Binder’s contributions have been in the areas of psychotherapy innovation, training, and research.
Vanderbilt University
Dr. Binder is one of the few clinical faculty of the Vanderbilt Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the rank of full Professor. He is sought after locally as a clinical supervisor by junior therapists.
Welcome to Dr. Binder’s Practice
Dr. Binder’s understanding of people has grown through years of treating clients with a wide assortment of difficulties. He believes that remaining current with relevant scientific findings and clinical literature enhances his clinical work.
He also believe that training young therapists at four universities has sharpened his thinking about how psychotherapy helps people, as well as improving his skills in conducting therapy.
A decade doing psychotherapy research also has deepened his understanding about how psychotherapy works. He uses a combination of psychodynamic, interpersonal, and cognitive treatment approaches, tailored to your personal situation.
Schedule an appointment today!
Credentials
Education, Advanced Certification & Honors
- Contributions to the field of psychology have been recognized by election to status of Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Georgia Psychological Association.
- Clinical expertise has been recognized by election to status of Fellow of the Academy of Clinical Psychology.
- Board Certified in Clinical Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology.
- Undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Michigan.
- Doctorate in Psychology with a specialty in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan.
Clinical Positions Held
- Director of adolescent and adult inpatient programs of a Psychiatric Hospital in Nashville, TN
- Director of the outpatient services of a Community Mental Health Center in Charlottesville, VA
- Chief Psychologist of a Community Mental Health Center in Howell, MI
Academic Positions Held
- Clinical Professor of Psychiatry (Current), Vanderbilt University Department of Psychiatry. Nashville, TN
- Instructor (Current) for the Nashville Center for Psychoanalysis and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy.
- Professor, Program Chair, Dean, Georgia School of Professional Psychology. Atlanta, GA
- Research Associate Professor of Psychology, Vanderbilt University Department of Psychology. Nashville, TN
- Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry, University of Virginia Department of Psychiatry. Charlottesville, VA
- Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry. Ann Arbor, MI
Scholarly Works
- Presented at professional meetings — nationally as well as in Europe and Scandinavia — on the topics of psychotherapy practice, training, and research.
- Authored or co-authored numerous book chapters and peer-reviewed articles.
- Acted as reviewer and editorial consultant for numerous professional journals and publishers.
Therapy Books
- Deliberate Practice in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy with Hana Levinson & Volney Gay (American Psychological Association, 2023)
- Core Competencies in Brief Dynamic Psychotherapy: Becoming A Highly Competent Brief Dynamic Psychotherapist, with Ephi Betan (Routledge, 2013)
- Key Competencies in Brief Dynamic Psychotherapy: Clinical Practice Beyond the Manual (Guilford, 2004)
- Psychotherapy In A New Key: A Guide to Time-Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy, with Hans H. Strupp (Basic Books, 1984)