Research
Research, Laboratories, and Projects
Affective Neuroscience Laboratories
(Contact Prof. Jonathan Gewirtz at jgewirtz@umn.edu for more information.)
Our laboratories (Profs. Gewirtz, Overmier, and Thomas) use animal models to investigate behavioral and biological aspects of emotion and motivation. Specific areas of interest include motivational conditioning and memory, reinforcement, drug addiction, stress, and anxiety.Auditory Perception and Cognition Lab
Studies of hearing using behavioral, computational and imaging techniques. Contact Prof. Andrew Oxenham for more information.Brain and Behavioral Processes Laboratory
(Contact Prof. Monica Luciana at lucia003@umn.edu or access our website at http://www.psych.umn.edu/faculty/luciana/index.htm for more information.)
The brain and behavioral processes laboratory uses a combination of behavioral, pharmacological, molecular genetic, and neuroimaging techniques to investigate the development and neurochemical underpinnings of functions controlled by the prefrontal cortex in humans. Specific areas of interest include working memory and cognitive control functions subserved by the dorsolateral and anterior cingulated cortices as well as reinforcement learning functions of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Current studies emphasize adolescent brain development and implications for the development of substance abuse disorders.Center for Cognitive Sciences
The Center for Cognitive Sciences is an interdisciplinary research center that serves as the foundation for research in the cognitive sciences at the University of Minnesota. Members of the Center represent 14 University departments and six colleges.Center for Interest Measurement Research
(Prof. Jo-Ida Hansen, Center Director, hanse004@umn.edu)
The Center for Interest Measurement Research (CIMR) functions as a research office dedicated to the accumulation of new knowledge in the field of vocational interest measurement and career development, to the development of materials that make practical use of this knowledge, and to the provision of graduate student and professional education.Center for the Study of the Individual and Society
The Center for the Study of the Individual and Society promotes research aimed at understanding how and why people become actively involved in doing good for others and for society.Center for the Study of Political Psychology
Located on the Minneapolis campus, the Center is dedicated to the establishment of a strong research community for social scientists focused on the theoretical and practical advancement of the field of political psychology.Cognitive Neuroscience Lab
In our lab, we explore through experiments how we gain access to, and awareness of, what we know and remember, and the accuracy and confidence of our judgments associated with such access. Our lab also uses neuroimaging techniques (fMRI) to examine the neuroanatomical correlates of memory encoding and retrieval.Computational Perception and Action Laboratory
Projects include:
·Multimodal Virtual Reality Environment
·Vision for Reach and Grasp
·Navigation and Reinforcement Learning
·fMRI Data Analysis
·Point LocationComputational Vision Lab
This lab uses computational, behavioral, and neuroimaging methods to understand human vision. Current research focuses on the perception and recognition of objects.Detection of Deception Laboratory
This lab examines the validity of psychophysiological techniques used to detect deception, guilty knowledge, and concealed information. The lab is also concerned with public policy implications of the applications of these techniques. For more information: http://www.psych.umn.edu/faculty/iacono.htm.Engel Vision and Imaging Lab
Research in our laboratory seeks to understand vision and cognition by combining measurements of behavior with neural measurements made using functional MRI. A main topic currently under investigation is visual plasticity—how cortex can change with experience. Within this domain we are examining effects of altered environments, perceptual training, and visual expertise.Eating Disorders Research Program (Crow, Peterson)
The Eating Disorders Research Program conducts studies on Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Binge Eating Disorder as well as on Obesity. Currently, the clinic is conducting a treatment study on symptoms of Bulimia Nervosa.Health and Eating Laboratory
Why do people fail to behave the way they want when they possess the necessary knowledge, skills, and opportunity to do so? Why do our best intentions so often go awry? Much of the work in my lab focuses on how people control their health behaviors after deciding to make a change. We focus closely on the particular health behaviors of dieting and eating, though we occasionally branch out into smoking and exercise.Jiang Lab on Human Attention and Memory
Research in Jiang Lab focuses on the cognitive and brain mechanisms that allow humans to perceive, attent, learn, and remember visual input, and how such processing guides visual and cognitive decision making. (contact Dr. Jiang: jiang166@umn.edu)Marsolek Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory
In this laboratory, we are interested in explaining human cognitive abilities--especially memory, vision, learning, and how these abilities are modulated by emotion and social interaction--in terms of how the brain accomplishes them. (Contact Dr. Marsolek: chad.j.marsolek-1@umn.edu)Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research (MCTFR)
The MCTFR seeks to identify environmental and genetic influences on psychological traits. Focusing on parents and their adolescent children, the MCTFR includes studies of twins, adoptees, and biologically related adolescent siblings. For more information, call the MCTFR office at 612-626-0245.Minnesota Laboratory for Low-Vision Research
The Minnesota Laboratory for Low-Vision Research is dedicated to understanding reading difficulties and other important visual problems encountered by people with low vision.Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
Non-profit continuing professional education program sponsored by the Department of Psychology, Kent State University and coordinated by the University of Minnesota Press.Multimedia Lab
Multimedia refers to computer-based presentations that combine several elements including text, graphics, still images, video, animation and sound. It can be delivered via LCD projector from your computer, over the internet, or the Department intranet.National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS): Twin Study
This study focuses on understanding the antecedents of successful outcomes in midlife. The principal investigators are from several universities around the country. Professor Robert Krueger (krueg038@umn.edu) is the investigator at the University of Minnesota and is in charge of the twin study portion of the MIDUS project.Project Happiness
This work is based on demographic and questionnaire data gathered from a large sample of adults drawn from the birth-record-based registry of middle-aged twins born in Minnesota from 1936 to 1955, the Minnesota Twins Registry.Psychoacoustics Laboratory
Psychoacoustics is the study of the relationship between the physical characteristics of acoustic stimuli and the psychological experiences or perceptions that listeners have in response to those stimuli.Race, Ethnicity, Migration and Mental Health
(Contact Prof. Richard M. Lee at richlee@umn.edu for more information.)
The REM-MH Lab studies different aspects of cultural socialization experience and its relevance to identity, well-being, and mental health in primarily Asian American populations. Current projects focus on acculturation conflicts between parents and children, relationship between ethnic identity and discrimination, cultural predictors of academic success for students of color, and transnational, transracial adoptive families with children from Asia and Latin America.Social Interaction Laboratory
(Contact Prof. Jeffry A. Simpson at simps108@umn.edu for more information.) The Social Interaction Laboratory, overseen by Prof. Jeff Simpson, is designed for studies that investigate how the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of interaction partners impact the development, growth, maintenance, stability, and deterioration of relationships. The Lab contains several rooms for the observation, video-recording, and coding of complex social interactions.Translational Research in Cognitive and Affective Mechanisms Laboratory
Studies being conducted in the lab include:
·Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) Study of Twins
·Cognitive Control over Habitual and Emotional Responses
·Decision-making and Emotional Mechanisms in Schizophrenia
·Cognitive and Functional Neuroanatomical Indices of the Genetic Predisposition to Schizophrenia
·Advanced Methods for Dissociating Cognitive Control in fMRITraumatic Life Events Lab
(Contact Prof. Patricia Frazier at pfraz@umn.edu for more information)
The research conducted in this lab focuses on the effects of traumatic events (e.g., victimization, bereavement), including both their negative (e.g., PTSD) and potentially positive (e.g., greater life appreciation) effects. We also study factors associated with recovery from traumatic events, including perceived control, coping, and social support. Current projects include the development a new measure of perceived control over traumatic events; a prospective, longitudinal study of traumatic life events; and a writing intervention for returning veterans.Vision and Attention Lab
In this laboratory, we are interested in the neural basis of human vision, visual attention, and visual awareness. Both psychophysical and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging methods are used in these studies.Vision Research Laboratories
Contains the Vision and Attention Laboratory, the Computational Vision Laboratory, the MN Laboratory for Low-Vision Research, and the Visual Cognition Laboratory.Vocational Assessment Clinic
VAC is a clinic, staffed by advanced graduate students in counseling psychology, that provides comprehensive testing, interpretation, and planning services for individuals who want to learn more about their vocational potential.Vocational Psychology Research
VPR supports, maintains, and distributes the instruments and materials developed to operationalize, test, and apply the Theory of Work Adjustment.Volunteerism Project
This research program involves coordinated cross-sectional, longitudinal, and intervention studies, conducted in field settings as well as in the laboratory, to understand the antecedents, experiences, and consequences stages of the volunteer process.