Barbara H. Stanley (August 13, 1949 – January 25, 2023)[1] was an American psychologist, researcher, and suicidologist who served as Professor of Psychology at Columbia University and the Director of Suicide Prevention Training at New York State Office of Mental Health.

[1] In 1970, she married Michael Edward Stanley, a neuroscientist, with whom she worked and published on subjects related to informed consent and borderline personality disorder.

She was the author and co-author of over 200 scholarly articles and book chapters, and served as editor-in-chief of the Archives of Suicide Research.

[4] She also served as the Director of the Suicide Prevention Training, Implementation and Evaluation for the Center for Practice Innovation and Research Scientist in Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology at New York State Psychiatric Institute.

[1] The plan envisioned patients at risk of suicide verbalize and later write down a simple list of coping strategies, along with specific sources of support as well as distractions that could be relied upon during a mental health emergency.