Anna S. Mueller, PhD, is the Luther Dana Waterman Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Senior Research Program Leader of the Mental Illness, Suicide, and Addiction Section of the Irsay Institute at Indiana University. Previously, she was a professor at the University of Chicago (from 2015-2019) and the University of Memphis (from 2011-2015). She is also the past-chair of the Section on Children & Youth of the American Sociological Association and the Principal Investigator of the Social Worlds & Youth Well-being Study. In 2020, she was recognized as one of Science News’s Top 10 Early Career Scientists to Watch and with the Edwin S. Shneidman Early Career Award from the American Association of Suicidology.
Mueller’s research agenda examines how social relationships and social contexts shape adolescent health and wellbeing over the transition to adulthood, with a focus on understanding adolescent suicide and suicide clusters. She is a leading expert on youth suicide and suicide prevention in schools and is passionate about helping communities heal after suicide losses.
A sought-after public speaker, she regularly speaks with school districts and communities about strategies to improve their suicide prevention and postvention efforts. Her first book – Life under Pressure: The Social Roots of Youth Suicide and What to Do About Them – was published in 2024. Written for a broad audience, the book helps guide families, schools, communities, and even teens themselves in building worlds youth feel are worth living in.
Mueller’s research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the Western Colorado Community Foundation, and the National Science Foundation. Her research has received multiple awards for its contribution to knowledge, including from the American Sociological Association, the American Pediatrics Association, the Society for Science & the Public, and the American Association of Suicidology.
Her research can be read in the American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Sociological Theory, Social Science & Medicine, and the American Journal of Public Health, among others. She teaches courses on sociology of health, medicine, mental health, education, children/youth, culture, gender, research methodology, and social statistics.
When she’s not at work, Mueller enjoys being outside, particularly hiking, gardening, or entertaining her cats, and she’s always in the middle of a good novel.
Anna S Mueller, PhD 