Overview
My research focuses on understanding how emotional events modulate cognitive processes in the human brain. We aim to identify brain regions that encode the emotional properties of sensory stimuli, and to show how these regions interact with neural systems supporting social cognition, executive control, and learning and memory. To achieve this goal, we use a variety of cognitive neuroscience techniques in human subject populations. These include psychophysiological monitoring, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), machine learning, and behavioral studies in healthy adults as well as psychiatric patients. This integrative approach capitalizes on recent advances in the field and may lead to new insights into cognitive-emotional interactions in the brain.
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience
·
2010 - Present
Psychology & Neuroscience,
Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
·
2021 - Present
Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Behavioral Medicine & Neurosciences,
Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Member of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience
·
1999 - Present
Center for Cognitive Neuroscience,
Duke Institute for Brain Sciences
Affiliate of the Center for Brain Imaging and Analysis
·
2007 - Present
Duke-UNC Brain Imaging and Analysis Center,
Institutes and Centers
Associate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society
·
2018 - Present
Duke Science & Society,
University Initiatives & Academic Support Units
Recent Publications
Selective emotion regulation in creative art production: Psychophysiological reactivity during painting reduces anxiety.
Journal Article iScience · June 20, 2025 Across the literatures of aesthetics, philosophy, and psychology, art has long been revered as a powerful means to enhance mental well-being-a perspective that has been integrated into clinical practices worldwide. While some empirical research supports th ... Full text Link to item CiteLearning emotion regulation: An integrative framework.
Journal Article Psychol Rev · January 2025 Improving emotion regulation abilities, a process that requires learning, can enhance psychological well-being and mental health. Empirical evidence suggests that emotion regulation can be learned-during development and the lifespan, and most explicitly in ... Full text Link to item CiteFear, learning, and the amygdala: a personal reflection in honor of Joseph LeDoux.
Journal Article Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) · January 2025 In honor of Joseph LeDoux's retirement from an illustrious career in science, I offer a personal reflection on how my graduate training experiences in his lab shaped my subsequent career trajectory and the development of my views on human amygdala function ... Full text CiteRecent Grants
Duke-NCCU Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral Training Program in Child Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Conditions Program (DN-IPT)
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEPreceptor · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2024 - 2029Duke University Psychiatry Physician-Scientist Residency Training Program
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institute of Mental Health · 2024 - 2029Neurostimulation Enhanced Cognitive Restructuring for Transdiagnostic Emotional Dysregulation: A component Analysis
ResearchCo Investigator · Awarded by National Institute of Mental Health · 2023 - 2027View All Grants
Education, Training & Certifications
New York University ·
1996
Ph.D.
Lafayette College ·
1990
B.A.