I am an Applied Research Scientist in Moffitt Cancer Center’s Tobacco Research and Intervention Program (TRIP). I was formerly a research assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Florida and a NIDA T32 postdoctoral fellow from the UF Substance Abuse Training Center in Public Health in the Department of Epidemiology. As a developmental psychologist and cognitive neuroscientist, I seek to improve the health and independence of older adults through my research. I am interested in the impact of aging on social cognition and health-related behaviors, including decision-making. My research aims to characterize social cognition and decision-making across adulthood and aging and to identify opportunities to enhance function in these domains, aiming to develop effective interventions (e.g., pharmacological - oxytocin, behavioral, and neuromodulatory) for older adults.

During my graduate studies, I examined the effects of intranasal oxytocin administration in younger and older adults on whole-brain pattern activation, functional connectivity, and behavior relevant to socioemotional skills impacted by aging (e.g., emotion identification, meta-mood). My postdoctoral work focused on the neurobiological and psychosocial contributors to chronic pain and substance use in aging. More recently, through a supplement to NIA R01AG072658 (Characterizing and Modulating Neurocognitive Processes of Learning to Trust and Distrust in Aging), I investigated non-social and social decision-making in older adults with and without chronic pain. At TRIP, I am involved in research that implements mHealth interventions for smoking cessation and mindfulness-based stress reduction to mitigate cancer-risk behaviors. I employ an integrative biopsychosocial approach, combining methods such as biological sampling, self-report and behavioral measures, and neuroimaging.

Download my CV.