Duncan Pedersen, MD, MPH, studies how societies impact the mental health of their citizens. His work focuses on Latin America, where large numbers of urban poor, ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples are exposed to social discrimination and political upheavals, poor environmental conditions, poverty, and income inequality. This results in substandard health conditions and a high prevalence of mental and social disorders.

The research of Duncan Pedersen is currently centered primarily on the long-term impact of political violence and wars amongst the indigenous populations of the Peruvian Highlands, primarily in relation to trauma-related disorders, collective suffering and local forms of distress. Over his career, Duncan Pedersen has worked in many parts of Latin America, including coastal Peru and Ecuador, the highland regions of the Andes, the Amazon Basin and northeast Brazil. Areas of research include women’s and children’s health issues, traditional medical practices, the ecology of infectious diseases, human rights, and the comparative analysis of medical systems.

Duncan Pedersen was also a contributor to the World Mental Health Report (1995), Department of Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School. The report was instrumental in shaping the WHO’s "Nations for Mental Health" initiative, which has helped improve mental health services for underserved populations. In addition to consulting for various international agencies (International Development Research Centre; WHO; Kellogg and Rockefeller Foundations), Duncan Pedersen has written numerous articles and book chapters related to social sciences and medicine, medical anthropology, public health, Amerindian health, political violence, and disease ecology.