Contact Information Departmental Area(s): Clinical Science Interests: Basic and treatment research on bipolar disorder. Neurobiological, cognitive, emotional, and social triggers of mania, with a focus on the reward system. Psychosocial parallels in the triggers of bipolar and unipolar depression. Psychosocial interventions to prevent mania. Serotonin and processes involved in emotion regulation.

Basic Research on Mania
People with bipolar disorder describe themselves as more reactive to rewards and goals in their life, and more prone to positive moods, even when they are asymptomatic.  More importantly, these basic traits help understand the processes through which mania unfolds.  We find that the level of reward sensitivity, as well as recent increases in goal engagement, both predict increases in mania over time among people with bipolar disorder.  We have also found that life involving goal attainment predict increases in mania.  Currently, we are conducting studies to understand the greater reactivity to success in this population, using paradigms drawn from neuro-imaging, emotion, information-processing, and impulsivity literatures.  Beyond understanding symptom genesis, we are interested in understanding how reward sensitivity and other biologically-based aspects of the disorder influence creativity, employment success, social functioning, and other outcomes.

Transdiagnostic Research on Serotonin and Emotion Regulation
Serotonergic deficits are associated with many different psychological disorders, including depression, mania, anxiety disorders, alcohol abuse, and suicidality.  I am interested in the psychological processes that could help link serotonin with these diverse outcomes.  New research is focused on how genetic polymorphisms in serotonin relate to laboratory and self-report measures of cognitive inhibition, emotional control, and impulsivity. 

Basic Research on Bipolar Depression
We have found that many of the risk variables that predict unipolar depression, including negative life events, low social support, poor self-esteem, and negative cognitive styles, predict bipolar depression. We are conducting further studies of how the triggers of unipolar and bipolar depression compare.

Selected Publications: