DURHAM, N.C. -- Self-control, the ability to contain one’s own thoughts, feelings and behaviors, and to work toward goals with a plan, is one of the personality traits that makes a child ready for school. And, it turns out, ready for life as well. In a large study that has tracked a thousand people from birth through age 45 in New Zealand, researchers have determined that people who had higher levels of self-control as children were aging more slowly than their peers at age 45. Their bodies and brains were healthier and… read more about Self-Controlled Children Tend to be Healthier Middle-Aged Adults »
This fall, Bass Connections hosted a virtual event to share stories of the program’s impact with our supporters. Three Duke students described their experiences as team members on projects exploring the global financial crisis, youth concussions and sustainable farming. Leadership Opportunities Maria Paz Rios ’21, History and Mathematics Duke senior Maria Paz Rios is a member of the American Predatory Lending and the Global Financial Crisis team. The team aims to draw from local, state and national perspectives in… read more about What We’re Getting Out of Our Bass Connections Teams »
From the anger and grief following the killings of several unarmed Black citizens to difficult conversations with younger family members about how the world will see them when they grow up, Zaire McPhearson had many moments this year when she saw in stark terms how far society has left to go before it truly confronts its racism. “The last couple of months have been extremely difficult, especially being a Black woman living in the American climate that we’re in,” said McPhearson, who graduated from Duke’s… read more about Desire for Change Drives Racial Justice Art Contest Winner »
Sarah Gaither, assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience, has been selected as the recipient of the 2020 Michele Alexander Early Career Award. All applications were reviewed by a panel of scholars, both senior and junior, with a wide range of interests and areas of expertise. Gaither's record of scholarship, teaching, and service was described by the committee as the embodiment of this honor, and the congratulatory letter from the award committee, stated: "… read more about Assistant professor Sarah Gaither awarded the 2020 Michele Alexander Early Career Award »
DURHAM, N.C. – With multiple COVID-19 vaccines on the way in the United States, public health officials now face the daunting challenge of convincing skeptics to actually get the vaccine. Three Duke experts in public health messaging, leadership and human behavior spoke with journalists Thursday in a virtual media briefing about challenges and solutions. Replay the briefing on YouTube. Here are excerpts: ON REACHING PEOPLE WHO DON’T FOLLOW PUBLIC HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS Dan Ariely,… read more about To Convince Vaccine Skeptics, Use Empathy, Information and a Re-Start, Experts Say »
Duke researchers, led by Reut Avinun Ph.D., a postdoctoral associate at Professor Ahmad Hariri’s lab, analyzed the MRI scans of over a thousand people to determine potential links between personality and brain shape. Although there are many personality neuroscience studies, consistent and reliable findings have not been established. While most previous studies used less than 300 individuals, this study has a large sample of 1,107 individuals. Additionally, this research comprehensively… read more about New study from Hariri Lab casts doubt on links between personality and brain structure »
Of all the things that make college students anxious, now you can add ghost cars to the list. Not haunted, unoccupied moving vehicles, Flying Dutchman style. “Ghost cars” is a term Duke Parking & Transportation (DPT) uses to define cars that enter or leave parking lots when the gates are up, like during a football game or evening event. The gate sensors don’t record them both entering and exiting, which causes problems in keeping an accurate count of the cars using a lot. A few summers ago, DPT asked a group of… read more about Quantitatively and Qualitatively, Data+ and Its Affiliated Programs Are Big Hits »
Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Elizabeth Marsh has been elected as a Fellow of the Society of Experimental Psychologists, the oldest and most prestigious honorary society in Psychology. Marsh joins a highly select group of distinguished empirical scientists. The membership elects only a handful of Fellows each year and the Society has only two functions: to honor its members and to gather annually to hear research presentations by Fellows. Normally,… read more about Professor Elizabeth Marsh elected Fellow of the Society of Experimental Psychologists »
Assistant professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Sarah Gaither appeared on Good Morning America to discuss the biracial contestants on The Bachelorette. "Watching these two people interact with each other was showing real, raw emotion about what it means to be contending with being Black and biracial in America," she said. read more about The New ‘Bachelorette’ Gets Candid with Her Suitors »
This month we offer a collection of Duke-authored books that explore historical and current aspects of faith, spirituality and religious culture in society. These books along with many others are available at the Duke University Libraries, the Gothic Bookshop or the Regulator Bookshop. The Bible With and Without Jesus by Marc Zvi Brettler What It's About: Professor Marc Z. Brettler and co-author Amy-Jill Levine take readers on a guided… read more about Eight Duke Books on Religion and Spirituality »
A chemistry and computer science major seeking to further explore solutions to climate change. A first-generation college student who studies the connection between race, history and educational policy. An African and African American Studies major who translated her research into service helping others in Durham overcome racial barriers to housing and education. These are the recipients of this year’s Faculty Scholars Awards, the highest bestowed by Duke faculty on undergraduates and honors students for a record of… read more about Three Undergraduates Named Faculty Scholars for Outstanding Records of Research »
Harris Cooper, professor emeritus of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, has been named the next editor-in-chief of American Psychologist®, the flagship journal of the American Psychological Association. “Harris Cooper is an outstanding selection as the next editor-in-chief of American Psychologist,” said current Editor-in-Chief Anne E. Kazak, PhD, ABPP. “He is a renowned scholar and has had extensive editorial experience that will help propel the journal forward over the… read more about APA names Harris Cooper next editor-in-chief of American Psychologist »
All Babies and Children Thrive (ABC Thrive) has awarded seed grants of up to $40,000 to four interdisciplinary teams of Duke faculty. The teams will explore new interventions to support positive early childhood development ranging from tools for earlier identification of children at risk for neurodevelopmental challenges, to methods for teaching young children prosocial behaviors, to improving outcomes for black children and families through early care interventions and new teaching methods. At the end of a successful… read more about Four Faculty Teams Receive ABC Thrive Seed Grants to Improve Early Childhood Outcomes »
DURHAM, N.C. -- More than three decades after they were found to have elevated blood lead levels as children, a group of middle-aged adults were found to have some small but significant changes in brain structure that corresponded to their dose of lead exposure in early life. MRI scans at age 45 revealed some small but significant changes in the brains of the people who had higher lead exposures measured at age 11. For each 5 micrograms per deciliter more lead they carried as children, the study participants lost an… read more about Childhood Lead Exposure Leads to Structural Changes in Middle-Aged Brains »
All Babies and Children Thrive (ABC Thrive) has awarded seed grants of up to $40,000 to four interdisciplinary teams of Duke faculty, two of which are teams from the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience. The teams will explore new interventions to support positive early childhood development ranging from tools for earlier identification of children at risk for neurodevelopmental challenges, to methods for teaching young children prosocial behaviors, to improving outcomes for black children and families… read more about Two P&N faculty teams receive ABC Thrive Seed Grants to improve early childhood outcomes »
When you run scientific studies that include infants, something will always go wrong. Families will be late or sick. The babies won’t behave. Or maybe, as happened at the Wilbourn Infant Laboratory at Duke (WILD), you’ll have to make a last-minute run to the store to buy a big pack of toothbrushes. In an interactive study, 20-month-old infants played with a variety of objects—things like a fake cookie and a toy apple, all of which the researchers had ensured were safe for infants. “We had it down,” said Makeba Wilbourn,… read more about Undergraduates Are Doing Real Research in Trinity College, And Everyone Benefits »
The 2020-2021 academic year provides a unique opportunity for Psychology & Neuroscience undergraduate students to attend virtual international conferences sponsored by the department. Each conference will be guided by a P&N faculty host who will recommend select conference sessions. The experience will also include opportunities for students to network with speakers and engage in a faculty-led, post-conference discussion session. There is a simple… read more about Department sponsors undergraduate Guided Virtual Conferences in Psychology & Neuroscience, 2020-2021 »
Sarah Gaither, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience has received the prestigious 2020 Sage Young Scholar Award. The Sage Young Scholar Awards recognize outstanding achievements by young scholars who are early in their research careers. The awards are intended to provide these scholars with funds that can be flexibly applied in extending their work in new and exciting directions. Previous recipients of this award have gone on to positions of intellectual… read more about Sarah Gaither receives 2020 SAGE Young Scholar Award »
Here are recently published and forthcoming books by Duke authors, from September and October: Marc Zvi Brettler, co-author: “The Bible With and Without Jesus: How Jews and Christians Read the Same Stories Differently” Annotated Edition (HarperOne, Oct. 27, 2020) Avshalom Caspi and Terrie E. Moffitt, co-authors: “The Origins of You: How Childhood Shapes Later Life” (Harvard University Press) Samuel Fury Childs Daly: “A History of the Republic of Biafra: Law, Crime,… read more about New Great Reads from Duke Authors »
A group of P&N graduate students and post doctoral fellows Matthew Bachman, Kathryn Dickerson, Shabnam Hakimi, Rosa Li & Brenda Yang have been spotlighted by Duke Research for forming a "journal club" called SPEAK: Scientists Promoting Equity and Knowledge. The group recently authored an essay about their work in the journal Nature. Their mission is, "To promote a more inclusive and equitable environment in academia, starting with our own beliefs and… read more about Department spotlight on SPEAK: Scientists Promoting Equity and Knowledge »
Aaron Reuben, fifth-year Ph.D. candidate in clinical psychology and member of the Moffitt and Caspi Lab, spoke at the Nicholas School’s Environmental Health and Toxicology Seminar series about the long-term implications of childhood lead exposure. Published in the Duke Research Blog, 9/21/20: Dealing With Lead for Life by Cydney Livingston Though lead has been widely eliminated from use in products due to proven health risks, the lifelong consequences of childhood lead… read more about Aaron Reuben addresses the long-term implications of childhood lead exposure »
Though lead has been widely eliminated from use in products due to proven health risks, the lifelong consequences of childhood lead exposure for children born in the era of lead use in gasoline are still unknown. Aaron Reuben, fifth-year Ph.D. candidate in clinical psychology at Duke, spoke about the long-term implications of childhood lead exposure Friday, September 18th through the Nicholas School’s Environmental Health and Toxicology Seminar series. He conducts research as a member of the Moffitt and Caspi Lab, studying… read more about Dealing With Lead for Life »
Faculty member Minna Ng has adapted to COVID-19 teaching obstacles by utilizing a Zoom Cart — one of 50 created this summer by Trinity Technology Services and Duke OIT. Read the full article in Duke Today: Zoom Carts help keep semester rolling as well as Ng's personal account: Six things I learned about face-to-face teaching in the time of Covid-19, originally published in the Duke Learning Innovations Blog, 9/24/20 by Andrea Novicki Dr. Minna Ng is… read more about Minna Ng adapts to COVID-19 teaching by utilizing a Zoom Cart, shares six take-aways from pedagogy in a pandemic »
The Duke Board of Trustees voted Saturday to rename the Sociology-Psychology Building on West Campus for Reuben-Cooke following the recommendations of the President’s Advisory Committee on Institutional History. By Geoffrey Mock; Originally published in Duke Today, Iconic West Campus Building Named After Duke Pioneer Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke, as a Duke undergraduate Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke came to Duke in 1963 as one of the “First Five” Black undergraduates, breaking barriers and entering… read more about Sociology-Psychology Building renamed after Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke, ’67 »
Wilhelmina Reuben-Cooke came to Duke in 1963 as one of the “First Five” Black undergraduates, breaking barriers and entering classroom buildings that had previously been closed to Black students. Now, her legacy as a pioneer at Duke and as a leading lawyer, law professor, university administrator and trustee for both Duke University and The Duke Endowment, will be celebrated by the renaming of one of those classroom buildings after her. The Duke Board of Trustees voted Saturday to rename the Sociology-Psychology Building… read more about Iconic West Campus Building Named After a Duke Pioneer »
Makeba Wilbourn, associate professor of the practice of psychology and neuroscience, understands that, in addition to producing important research on the cognitive development of children, her lab’s goal is to inspire students with a healthy atmosphere. Students who work in Makeba WIlbourn's lab watch a classmates' thesis defense on Zoom, which has become an essential tool for faculty and students this fall. Excerpt from: LESSONS FROM TEACHING IN A PANDEMIC: After… read more about Makeba Wilbourn and her lab featured for commitment to community, inclusivity, and healthy lab atmosphere amid COVID-19 »
After teaching a doctoral course for the past five years that mixes in-person learning and online class sessions, Duke Divinity School’s Curtis Freeman is an online teaching veteran. Curtis Freeman has embraced the challenge of teaching online. Photo courtesy of Duke Divinity School. But with COVID-19 limiting in-person classes this fall, and making Freeman’s class an entirely online affair, even he knew he’d need to keep evolving. “The delivery and interaction with students is different this fall,” said Freeman,… read more about Lessons From Teaching in a Pandemic »
Eight faculty members from the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience have been awarded Research Seed Grants via philanthropic support from The Charles Lafitte Foundation Program in Psychological and Neuroscience Research at Duke University. The faculty projects – all chosen by review committee – show great promise both for generating exceptional research and for providing opportunities for students. In a letter to recipients, P&N Chair Scott Huettel offered… read more about 2020-2021 Faculty Research Seed Grant recipients announced »
Sarah Gaither, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, writes about the way Kamala Harris's nomination sheds light on black female experiences. Read the article at Psychology Today. read more about Black Women: The Invisible Warriors »