Research Labs

Adult Development & Aging Lab

Director: Cindy S. Bergeman

Why do some people age more successfully than others? How do some individuals manage to maintain high self-esteem, good physical health, and a positive outlook on life in spite of facing the same adversities that lead others to give up, get sick, or lose hope? What are the behavioral, psychological, environmental, and social factors that help people to cope with life’s stresses? These are some of the questions we are hoping to answer. Our goal in the Adult Development & Aging Lab is to advance understanding of the multiple pathways that lead to successful development across the lifespan.

Assessment, Learning, and Prediction for Health Analytics (ALPHA) Lab

Director: Dr. Oscar Gonzalez

Attention, Memory, and Perception Lab

Director: Bradley Gibson

The ability to act in a goal-directed fashion in spite of many competing forces is one of the hallmarks of adaptive human functioning. The AMP Lab examines how basic cognitive mechanisms enable and optimize this adaptive behavior by allowing us to perceive, select, maintain, and retrieve goal-relevant information. We use a variety of different methods, including behavioral, physiological, mathematical modeling, and neuroimaging approaches, to address these questions. We are also interested in examining these questions by considering both individual and group differences, especially between typical and atypical populations.

BRAVE (Building Resilience After Violence Exposure) Research Lab

Director: Laura Miller-Graff

Working within an ecological framework, our research seeks to understand how various systems (i.e., individual, family, and community) interact to promote or inhibit healthful development following violence exposure. Based on this research, we aim to develop, adapt and/or evaluate brief, empirically validated treatments for individuals exposed to chronic forms of violence and trauma. Current projects include randomized controlled trials of brief programs for pregnant women exposed to intimate partner violence and a family-based intervention for families in Palestine. Our research most commonly employs a community-based participatory approach, with local partners and stakeholders engaged in multiple phases of the research.

Breakthrough Research on Autism & Inclusive Neurodevelopment (BRAIN) Lab

Director: Caitlin Clements

At the BRAIN Lab at Notre Dame, we strive to understand how autism develops, and how to best support autistic individuals and their families. We are adding content to our webpage as the BRAIN Lab gets off the ground, so check back frequently!

The BRAIN Lab is part of the Notre Dame Psychology Department and located at:
The William J. Shaw Center for Children and Families at Notre Dame
1602 N Ironwood Dr
South Bend, IN 46635

Childhood and Adolescence Resilience (CARE) Lab

Director: Elizabeth Shewark

Cognition & Emotion Lab

Director: Gerald Haeffel

Given the same stressful life event, why is it that some people develop depression whereas others do not? According to the cognitive theories of depression, it depends on how you think about the stress. Some people have a “cognitive vulnerability” that interacts with stress to increase the likelihood of depression. Our research is focused on how best to conceptualize, measure, and change cognitive vulnerability.

Cognition, Learning, and Development (CLAD) Lab

Director: Nicole McNeil

We study cognitive development, with a particular emphasis on mathematical cognition and skilled reading. We use the methods and tools from cognitive science to tackle fundamental questions about the learning process, while also addressing practical challenges that educators face. We collaborate with researchers, computer scientists, teachers, policymakers, and other leaders in education to design learning environments that support all children in achieving their full potential. In this way, we embody the mission of the Institute for Educational Initiatives to improve education for all children, particularly those who do not have access to the same resources, opportunities, and support as others.

Controlled Attention and Memory (CAM) Lab

Director: Matthew Robison

The Controlled Attention and Memory (CAM) Lab at the University of Notre Dame uses a combination of individual-differences, experimental design, and psychophysiology to unravel the underpinnings of attention and memory.

Decision Neuroscience Lab

Director: Aron Barbey

The human brain is a system like no other, capable of applying knowledge and experience to solve the infinite variety of problems we encounter in life. But the brain doesn’t only solve familiar problems – it adapts to new environments, learns to discover and understand what was once unknown, and creates truly original solutions. Our research aims to understand how this capacity for general intelligence emerges from the network topology and dynamics of the human connectome. By uncovering the neural foundations of intelligence, we aim to drive innovation in cognitive enhancement, neurorehabilitation, and biologically inspired artificial intelligence.

Development & Psychopathology Laboratory

Director: Kristin Valentino

Our research addresses how adversity affects child development with a focus on the caregiving behaviors that may promote risk and/or resilience. We study positive and negative caregiving behaviors, and evaluate how interventions may be designed to improve caregiving to improve developmental outcomes for children. We are especially interested in families who are facing adversities such as child maltreatment, poverty, and discrimination. Guiding our research is a developmental psychopathology perspective which emphasizes the interface between normal and atypical development and employs a multiple-levels-of analysis approach towards the study of child development and child psychopathology.

Family Studies Lab

Director: E. Mark Cummings

We study communication, conflict and emotional security in families, including basic and translational research that occurs in the US and abroad.

Lab for Big Data Methodology

Director: Zhiyong (Johnny) Zhang

Our lab aims to develop better statistical methods and software in the areas of education, management, health and psychology. Our most recent research involves the development of new methods for social network, text mining, and big data analysis. Particularly, we have contributed to the areas of Bayesian methods, Network analysis, Big data analysis, Text mining, Structural equation modeling, Longitudinal data analysis, Mediation analysis, and Statistical computing and programming.

Lab for Developmental and Health Research Methodology

Director: Lijuan Wang

Our lab aims to develop and apply statistical methods in the areas of developmental, family, and health disparities research.

We are interested in developing and evaluating quantitative methods for longitudinal research, mediation/moderation analysis, cumulative data analysis, and study design issues such as sample size planning.

We are also interested in applying quantitative methods to address novel and important research questions in developmental, family, and health disparities research.

Language Lab

Director: Kathleen M. Eberhard

The research of the Language Lab involves three areas:

• Bilingualism, particularly how one's native language affects comprehension of the second language.
• Factors related to individual differences in language learning.
• Coordination of understanding in face-to-face and remote dialogue.

Latino Adolescents, Siblings, and Families Lab

Director: Jenny Padilla

Broadly, the LASF Lab is interested in families as a context of development, academic achievement, and psychological adjustment, primarily in adolescence and young adulthood. A major goal of our research is to advance understanding of the diversity of youth and family experiences within the Latino population as well as the cultural practices and values within families that impact family roles, responsibilities, and relationships as well as youth well-being. We are particularly interested in sibling-related family dynamics.

Siblings exert a pronounced and unique influence on youth across adolescence. Siblings spend substantial amounts of time together across adolescence, often more than time with parents, peers, or alone affording them countless opportunities to learn from and be influenced by one another. Siblings serve as sources of support, validation, and skill development that can improve self-regulation and emotional understanding.

Learning Analytics and Measurement in Behavioral Sciences (LAMBS)

Director: Ying (Alison) Cheng

Our lab is interested in measurement issues in psychological assessment and educational testing. We specialize in item response theory and its applications to large-scale testing programs. Specific topics of interest include detection of aberrant responses in low- and high-stakes assessments, computerized adaptive testing, cognitive diagnostic modeling, test/item bias, classification accuracy and consistency and so on.

In addition to developing new methodologies, we are very interested in applying advanced statistical methods to substantive areas, such as education research and health outcome research. For example, we develop diagnostic testing platforms and use machine learning methods to provide personalized feedback and targeted learning materials to students in real time.

Memory Lab

Director: G. A. Radvansky

The vast majority of the projects being done in the Memory Lab are focused on various aspects of event cognition and how they impact human memory. Specifically, we are interested in how the structure of events, both real and vicarious, influence the ease with which information is comprehended, learned, and remembered.

Processes in Personality and Psychopathology (PoPPy) Lab

Director: Haya Fatimah

The Processes in Personality and Psychopathology (PoPPy) Lab takes the complex systems perspective to psychopathology. We study the complex dynamics in personality pathology including the influence of contenxtual risk processes and patterns of self-regulation in momentary symptoms. Our ultimate goal is to identify early warning signals that precede spikes in symptoms, thereby identifying critical windows of intervention and informing personalized prevention and intervention efforts

Psychometrics and Dynamic Analysis (PDA) Lab

Director: Guangjian Zhang

Our primary research interest is to develop, evaluate, and disseminate new research methods in the social and behavioral sciences. We are particularly interested in improving measurement tools like questionnaires under different conditions.

Psychopathology and Interpersonal Relationships Lab

Director: David A. Smith

In the Psychopathology and Interpersonal Relationships Lab (PIRL) we study close interpersonal relationship processes, such as communication, problem-solving, and criticism, in relation to emotional difficulties, such as depression and chronic pain. Behavioral, cognitive, emotional, and physiological mechanisms have all been targets of investigation. PIRL is associated with the Couples Therapy and Research Clinic, which is a training and couples therapy affiliate of the Notre Dame Psychological Services Center.

Psychophysiology of Affect across the Lifespan (PAL) Lab

Director: Kaylin Hill

The PAL Lab is directed by Dr. Kaylin Hill and housed in the Psychology Department at the University of Notre Dame. Their research examines a range of processes—including emotion, cognition, and reward—using a range of modalities, in particular event-related potentials (ERPs). ERPs provide a measure of neural activity at the scalp, and are well-suited to working with participants across the lifespan. The aims of their research span across basic science (e.g., refining our measures) and applied science (e.g., patterns that relate to psychopathology or mental health concerns).

Scoring in General and Mediation Analysis (SiGMA) Lab

Director: Alexis Georeson

The SiGMA lab develops, evaluates, and applies quantitative methods in two primary areas: scoring, and mediation.

We develop and evaluate ways of creating scores from psychological measures (e.g., sum scores, factor scores). We ask when simple sum scores perform adequately enough and when they materially affect reliability, validity, and interpretation, particularly when those scores are used in models such as regression models and structural equation models.

Mediation is best used with longitudinal data, but researchers do not always have access to such data. To help researchers have more confidence that their mediated effect estimates are correct, we developed a sensitivity analysis for cross-sectional mediation.

Sleep and Health Research Lab

Director: Dr. Ivan Vargas

The Sleep and Health Research Lab focuses on understanding insomnia, including its etiology and pathophysiology. Recognizing that insomnia negatively impacts both sleep and overall health, the lab investigates its role as a risk factor for conditions like depression. By studying these connections, the lab aims to identify clinically useful markers that could inform treatment and prevention efforts. Additionally, the team explores how behavioral interventions, such as CBT-I, can improve both sleep and overall health outcomes.

Sleep, Stress, and Memory (SAM) Lab

Director: Jessica Payne

We research how sleep and stress independently and interactively influence learning, memory, emotion, and creativity. We are also interested in how sleep and stress influence mental health disorders, such as depression and anxiety.

Socioemotional Development Lab

Director: Dawn Gondoli

 Our team pursues research on adolescent social, emotional, and cognitive development. We have specific interests in body image, parent-teen relationships, and ADHD.

Statistical Learning and Behavioral Modeling Lab (SLBM Lab)

Director: Cheng Liu

Statistical Methods for Real Data Lab

Director: Ke-Hai Yuan

Many statistical methods were developed by assuming normally distributed data, and the likelihood ratio statistics follow chi-square distributions. Real data are seldom normally distributed and are often incomplete, especially those used in psychological research. Convenient use of statistical methods simply treats them as a publication tool rather than a tool for discovery of truth.

We develop methods by considering the distribution and nature of the real data, possibly with many variables, aiming for more accurate prediction and inference.

Studying Processes in Everyday Life (SPIEL) Lab

Director: Ryan Carpenter

Visual Cognition Laboratory

Director: James R. Brockmole

We are interested in how human observers create, store, and employ representations of objects and scenes. Specific interests include how visual short-term memory develops over time, how visual attention and memory subserve various cognitive behaviors such as search and wayfinding, and how context and experience influence performance on visually guided tasks. The lab uses a variety of tasks and dependent measures to investigate these aspects of cognition, but a major methodology involves the recording and analysis of eye movements, which reveal what and how visual information is processed in real time.