Michael T. Compton, M.D., M.P.H. is Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University and a Research Psychiatrist at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Dr. Compton has maintained continuous National Institute of Mental Health research funding for 20 years, conducting research on first-episode psychosis, the CIT model of collaboration between law enforcement and mental health, and community-based mental health services. His research has led to more than 275 publications. His primary area of research relates to criminal justice over-involvement among individuals with serious mental illnesses, most usually for minor misdemeanor charges. He is also very interested in incorporating public health and prevention into psychiatry, one means of which is by addressing the social determinants of health. His books include a manual for police officers responding to persons with mental illnesses, a guide for patients with first-episode psychosis and their family members, a textbook on the complex connection between marijuana and schizophrenia, and seven American Psychiatric Association books, including The Social Determinants of Mental Health (2015) and Entangled: How People with Serious Mental Illness Get Caught in Misdemeanor Systems (2025).