Dr Silverstein got a Ph.D. in Psychology from Rutgers University in 1974; followed a training program in Gestalt Therapy with Laura Perls at the Gestalt Institute of New York (1967- 1969); and a Sex Therapy Training Program under Helen Singer Kaplan, Cornell Medical School (1978-1980). He is co-author of The Joy of Gay Sex.

He is the founding director of the Institute for Human Identity and Identity House in New York City. He is the founding editor of the Journal of Homosexuality. Dr Silverstein lives in New York.