Lab Director
Charles Geier, Ph.D. (University of Pittsburgh)
Professor | Human Development and Family Science (HDFS)
University of Georgia
Athens, GA
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=GIravigAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
My ORCID page
Click here for current CV
Interests: Developmental cognitive neuroscience, with particular focus on reward processing, cognitive control, and their interaction; understanding the relationship between adolescent neurodevelopment and risk taking behavior; nicotine dependence in adolescent and young adults; brain structural and functional connectivity; instrumental behavior; habit formation in adolescents and young adults
mailto: [email protected]
Professor | Human Development and Family Science (HDFS)
University of Georgia
Athens, GA
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=GIravigAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
My ORCID page
Click here for current CV
Interests: Developmental cognitive neuroscience, with particular focus on reward processing, cognitive control, and their interaction; understanding the relationship between adolescent neurodevelopment and risk taking behavior; nicotine dependence in adolescent and young adults; brain structural and functional connectivity; instrumental behavior; habit formation in adolescents and young adults
mailto: [email protected]
Lab Members
Current
Daniel Petrie
Kathleen Meeks
Affiliated Scholars
Kelley Gunther
Priyanka Paul, doctoral student at Penn State
Vani Gupta, doctoral student at Penn State
Alumni
Nicole Roberts, B.A. (Westminster College), MS (University of Bath, England), Ph.D. (The Pennsylvania State University)
David Lydon-Staley, Ph.D. (The Pennsylvania State University)
Amanda Child, Ph.D.
Jessica Braymiller, Ph.D.
Roisin White, Ph.D.
Rinanda Shaleha - graduate student, Penn State
Current
Daniel Petrie
- I am a graduate student in Human Development and Family Studies, and a Predoctoral Fellow in the Prevention and Methodology Training program. I am broadly interested in the relationship between adolescent brain development and decision-making. Specifically, I am interested in the mechanisms that help facilitate the transition from goal-directed behavior to habitual behavior, and how adolescents may form habits differently than children and adults. In my spare time I enjoy cooking, listening to music, and watching sports.
Kathleen Meeks
- I am a first-year graduate student in the Neuroscience PhD program. My interests are quite varied but they are largely founded in a desire to understand the mechanisms and circuitry underlying various pediatric neurological diseases so they can be more effectively treated. I am especially interested in the ever-growing evidence for various art therapies and their effects on neurological pathways that may be affected by such diseases. When I am not in lab or studying, I enjoy spending time outdoors, singing, and dancing with my 2-year-old daughter.
Affiliated Scholars
Kelley Gunther
- I am a graduate student in the Developmental Psychology program at Penn State. I am interested in top-down attention as a mechanism of risk or resilience in children with a temperamental predisposition for anxiety, emphasizing naturalistic paradigms to measure these behaviors. In my spare time I enjoy rock climbing, hiking, and camping.
- **Dr. Gunther is currently a post-doctoral fellow at Yale University
Priyanka Paul, doctoral student at Penn State
Vani Gupta, doctoral student at Penn State
Alumni
Nicole Roberts, B.A. (Westminster College), MS (University of Bath, England), Ph.D. (The Pennsylvania State University)
- I am a graduate student in Human Development and Family Studies, and a Predoctoral Fellow in the Childhood Obesity Prevention Training program. I am interested in the relationship between adolescent brain development and various components of decision-making, particularly reward sensitivity and impulsivity. Specifically, I am interested in examining these mechanisms in adolescent smokers and in food-choice behavior. I am also interested in the application of fMRI with formal computational and economic models (neuroeconomics) to increase our understanding of the neurocognitive processes underlying complex behaviors, particularly risky decision-making. In my spare time I can be found running around the hills of Happy Valley. I love to travel; I've lived in England (2x) and have traveled to 14 countries. I am an avid Pittsburgh sports fan and I follow the Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates religiously.
- **Dr. Roberts is currently a medical research scientist at Highmark Health
David Lydon-Staley, Ph.D. (The Pennsylvania State University)
- My research interests are focused on the increase in risky decision-making and behavior observed during adolescence. I am interested in examining risky behavior alongside the development of brain systems underlying responses to incentives and cognitive control, as well as the interactions of these systems. In my spare time I enjoy making music and, like all Irishmen, a good cup of tea! You can check out my personal website with information on being a graduate student at Penn State and living in State College.
- **Dr. Lydon-Staley is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania -- click here
Amanda Child, Ph.D.
Jessica Braymiller, Ph.D.
Roisin White, Ph.D.
Rinanda Shaleha - graduate student, Penn State
