Education

B.A., Vassar College
M.A. and Ph.D., University of Chicago

Research

My primary research investigates the neural basis of attention, emotion, executive functions, and self-regulation in the human brain. My research has examined neural processes that implement self-regulatory functions, such as regulating emotions and adjusting performance following mistakes during difficult cognitive tasks. I am also interested in both adaptive and maladaptive aspects of mind-wandering as an aspect of attentional regulation and the effects of stress and adversity on executive functions. I rely upon cognitive, psychophysiological (EEG/ERP), and eye-tracking methods to address these questions. In addition to these primary lines of research, I have co-authored a cognitive neuroscience textbook with Marie Banich (Cambridge University Press, 2023). I also have examined how research in psychology and neuroscience can promote global child welfare, an issue I addressed in a book on international adoption (Oxford University Press, 2016). More broadly, I am interested in the intersection between rigorous methodology and societal implications of cognitive neuroscience research.