Dr. Victoroff received his B.A. Magna Cum Laude in Great Books from St. John’s College, his Masters in Social Science from the University of Chicago, and his M.D. with honors from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.  He completed his residency in psychiatry at Harvard’s McLean Hospital and his residency in neurology at the Harvard Longwood Medical Area Neurology program. He was Chief Resident in Neurology at the Beth Israel Hospital.  He also completed a 2-year fellowship in Neurobehavior at UCLA.

Since then he has served on the faculty of the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, where he now serves as Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology and Psychiatry.  He is board certified in Neurology and in Psychiatry, certified by the United Council of Neurologic Specialists in Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry, certified by the American Society for Neuro-rehabilitation in Neurorehabilitation, and certified by the Brain Injury Association of America as a Certified Brain Injury Specialist Trainer.  He was given an award by the Brain Injury Association for his help in developing their training program.   His clinical work is divided between directing the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)/Neuropsychiatry Clinic at the renowned Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center and serving as one of six national Directors of the National Football League (NFL) Neurologic Care Program.

His medico-legal career is primarily in the domain of behavioral neurology/neuropsychiatry, especially acquired brain injury.  He has served as an expert witness in numerous high profile cases, both civil and criminal, for the plaintiff, the defense, and the prosecution.  His work in civil litigation is mostly in cases of traumatic brain injury (TBI), PTSD, dementia, or epilepsy.  His expertise is in determining the etiology, severity, pathophysiology, appropriateness of treatment, post-traumatic changes in function, employability, cognition, and behavior, prognosis, and long-term needs of persons who have experienced traumatic brain injury.  He often evaluates cases of alleged or actual Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and has testified regarding the cause, severity, prognosis, and treatment needs of PTSD cases and the relationship between PTSD and alterations in behavior such as depression or aggression—including cases in post-deployment U.S. servicemen.  He is expert at distinguishing between genuine medical cases of TBI or PTSD versus malingering, symptom exaggeration, or conversion disorder.

His criminal expert witness work revolves around violence.  He is expert at determining the developmental, neurological, and psychiatric causes of violence, especially homicide—including mass homicides and serial murder.  He regularly testifies in both pre- and post-conviction trials, including Federal Court habeas appeals for persons on Death Row.  He has discovered cases of TBI-related brain injury, epilepsy, and other neurobehavioral causes of previously unexplained violence.

 He cautions retaining attorneys that he is absolutely impartial and independent.  He will provide the best scientifically accurate analysis of cases possible, within the scope of his training and practice.

His research is divided between behavioral neurology and political psychology.  He studies behavioral complications of traumatic brain injury and the psychology of human aggression. He has published in multiple peer-reviewed medical journals, including Neurology, the Journal of the American Psychiatric Association, and the Archives of General Psychiatry.  He is regularly invited to present his new research at scientific meetings. He is a member of the Research Committee of the American Neuropsychiatric Association, has advised the National Institute of Neurologic Diseases and Stroke on the Traumatic Brain Injury Common Data Elements initiative, and is a Program Director of the National Football League’s Neurologic Care Program.

He also studies the Psychology of Terrorism.  He is particularly interested in individual factors and evolutionary imperatives that may predispose to radicalization and inform counterterrorism initiatives.  He serves on the U.N. Roster of Terrorism Experts, has published peer-reviewed articles in the Journal of Conflict Resolution, Aggressive Behavior, and Political Psychology, and has edited two books on this subject: Tangled Roots: Social and Psychological Factors in the Genesis of Terrorism (2006) and, with Arie Kruglanski, Psychology of Terrorism: Classic and Contemporary Insights (2009).  His latest work for the US Government’s Strategic Multilayer Assessment Program was titled ‘Applied Evolutionary Neurobehavior to reduce participation in al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula.’