Research Interests

Emotion Regulation, Empathy, and Prosocial Behavior

My research examines how adolescents’ emotional responses and regulatory capacities shape empathy, sympathy, and helping. I use behavioral and psychophysiological measures to ask why concern for another person sometimes leads to action and sometimes does not. This work considers how autonomic responses, emotion regulation strategies, and opportunities to help work together to shape prosocial behavior.

Current themes

Emotion regulation and autonomic physiology, including RSA and PEP
Links between empathy, sympathy, and helping behavior
Conditions under which emotional concern translates into prosocial action

Stress, Social Motivation, and Altruistic Action

I study how young people respond to stress and what motivates them to help others. My work examines physiological and subjective responses to stress, including the extent to which those responses align, alongside the different reasons adolescents may act prosocially. Together, these questions help clarify how regulation and motivation contribute to altruistic decisions.

Current themes

Autonomic responses to acute stress
Correspondence between physiological and subjective stress responses
Prosocial motives and altruistic decision-making

Social Contexts and Adolescent Development

Adolescents develop within families, schools, neighborhoods, and communities that offer different opportunities and challenges. Using longitudinal data, including the ABCD Study, I examine how these environments relate to brain function and development. I am particularly interested in how school climate and other sources of support may shape developmental outcomes across levels of neighborhood disadvantage.

Current themes

Neighborhood disadvantage and adolescent brain function
School climate and inhibitory control
Patterns of support across family, school, and community contexts

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