Neurocognitive Consequences of Adolescent Drug Use
The project is designed to identify specific inhibitory-based, neurocognitive deficits associated with a history of adolescent drug use and to examine how this association is mediated by two established adolescent risk factors for substance abuse, ADHD and conduct disorder (CD).
Mechanisms Of Alcohol Tolerance And Priming In Humans
The project is based on the hypothesis that the abuse potential of alcohol is determined by its reward-enhancing effects and its disruptive effects on control mechanisms. Studies examine the effects of controlled doses of alcohol on neurocognitive performance tasks that measure inhibitory and activational aspects of control. The measures will be studied in relation to alcohol-induced priming of self-administration and the development of learned alcohol tolerance.
The Logic of the Scientific Method in the Fourth Grade
The practical goal of the project is to develop an effective, general intervention for the teaching of the core logic of the scientific method (i.e., the "control of variables strategy"). The theoretical goals are to improve our understanding of the contributions to science learning of (1) direct instruction vs. discovery learning, and (2) constraints on the learning situation.
Cholinesterase Inhibitors, Axonal Transport and Memory
The objective of this project is to identify specific relationships between cellular and biochemical manifestations of repeated, subthreshold exposures to OPs and cognitive function in an experimental animal model.
Ethanol Withdrawal and HIV-1 Neurotoxicity
This project looks at the effects of chronic ethanol exposure and withdrawal on neurotoxicity associated with Tat proteins (a viral transcription factor thought to contribute to the development of HIV-associated dementia.
Some Recent Publications:
Eng, A. G., Nirjar, U., Elkins, A. R., Sizemore, Y. J., Monticello, K. N., Petersen, M. K., Miller, S. A., Barone, J., Eisenlohr-Moul, T. A., & Martel, M. M. (in press). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and the menstrual cycle: Theory and evidence. Hormones and Behavior. NIHMS1948543.
Kim, M. H., Han, J., Buford, K. N., Osterhage, J. L., & Usher, E. L. (in press). Undergraduate student perceptions of instructor mindset and academic performance: A motivational climate theory perspective. Contemporary Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2024.102280
Elkins, A., Petersen, M.K., Nirjar, U., Monticello, N., & Martel, M.M. (2024). Evidence-based assessment of developmental disorders. Assessment, 31(1), 3-23.
Leger, K.A., Haynes, E. N., Hilbert, T. J., Maras, J., Brancato, C., & Bush, H. (2024). Teacher stress and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Differences by teaching modality. School Psychology Review. Advance online publication. DOI: 10.3102/0013189X221134281
Maras, J., & Leger, K.A. (2024). “Think of the situation in a positive light”? A look at cognitive reappraisal, affective reactivity, and health. Social Science and Medicine. Advance online publication. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116701.
Armenta, A. D., Alvarez, M. J., Aguilera, R., Hitlan, R., Federico, C., & Zárate, M. A. (2023). Cultural inertia: Framework of Change and Intergroup Relations. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672221076209
Humburg, B. A. and Bardo, M. T. (2023). Renewal of cocaine seeking using social and nonsocial contextual stimuli. Psychopharmacology. [PMCID: PMC10806405]. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37391496/
Leger, K.A., Charles, S.T., Brown, C.J., & Fingerman, K.L. (2023). Physical activity and daily stress processes in older adulthood. Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 78, 20-29. DOI: 10.1093/geronb/gbac113.
Goh, P. K., Smith, T. E., Lee, C. A., Bansal, P. S., Eng, A. G., & Martel, M. M. (2023). Etiological networks of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder during childhood and adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 52(2), 230-243. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2021.1946820
Kim, M. H., Buford, K., Ellis, A., Davis-Kean, P. E., Antony, C., Braun, C., Hurst, T., & Todd, J. (2023). A metascience investigation of inclusive, open, and reproducible science practices in research posters at the 2021 SRCD biennial meeting. Child Development. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.14059
Leger, K.A., Gloger, E.M., Crawford, L.R., McDade, T.W., & Segerstrom, S.C. (2022). Sleep variability and inflammation in midlife and older women. Psychosomatic Medicine, 84, 1006 – 1012. DOI: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000001130.
Widiger, T. A., & Hines, A. (2022). The DSM-5 Alternative Model of Personality Disorder. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment. 13, 347-355; and Widiger, T. A. (2020). Bruno Klopfer Award address: Five-factor model personality disorder scales. Journal of Personality Assessment, 102, 1-9.
Malone, S. G., Keller, P. S., Hammerslag, L. H. and Bardo, M. T. (2021). Escalation and reinstatement of fentanyl self-administration in male and female rats. Psychopharmacology, 238, 2261-2273. [PMCID: PMC10332850]. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33895852/