Background Information

I will be graduating from the University of Maryland College Park May 2009 with a double major in Psychology and Criminal Justice. I have had the opportunity to previously work in Dr. Jude Cassidy’s Laboratory of Family and Child Develop examining infant attachment and emotional development. Currently, I am working in two laboratories located on campus, which include the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Lab and the Center of Addictions, Personality and Emotion Research (CAPER). In the ADHD lab I am working with Dr. Andrea Chronis examining the relationship between mothers clinically diagnosed with depression that also have children diagnosed with ADHD. At CAPER I am also involved in Dr. Stacey Daughter’s study looking at adolescent distress tolerance. Specifically, I help run the experiments and collect data and literature needed for future analysis. In addition, I am conducting my own research project assessing ADHD and risky sexual behavior in adolescence. Upon graduation, I plan to attend a graduate program in Clinical Social Work.

Research Interests

My research interests include behavioral and cognitive disorders in children and adolescence, specifically ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and how they play a part in a child’s social and environmental interactions. I am particularly interested in how these disorders influence risky behavior that may lead to criminal delinquency.