Fall 2014 Newsletter

Psychology

UPDATE Top Stories from 2014

The Psychology Update is a newsletter written for Alumni and Friends of the UAB Department of Psychology.

Inside This Issue

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Neuroplasticity and Healing His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama visits UAB to discuss the research and treatments developed by Dr. Edward Taub and others as part of Birmingham's Human Rights Week.

Alumni Alumna Lindsay Sutton, Ph.D. is spotlighted in UAB Magazine and an inside look at the 2014 Distinguished Alumni Awards.

The Mind as Medicine Faculty research is showcased in UAB Magazine article entitled, “The Mind as Medicine.”

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A Farewell to Dr. Carl McFarland

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It’s the end of an era as Professor Carl E. McFarland, Jr., Ph.D. takes a look back on his time at UAB and says goodbye to the Department of Psychology.

Department News

Find out what faculty and students have been up to as well as upcoming events for UAB Psychology.

2014 Fall Picnic A look back on the 2014 Department of Psychology Welcome Back Picnic with photos and more from the record setting event.

Neuroplasticity and Healing OCTOBER 25,2014

A Scientific Symposium with His Holiness The Dalai Lama from article on www.uab.edu and al.com (writer: Michael Huebner)

Pictured Dr. Edward Taub receives a kata from His Holiness following the symposium

As part of Birmingham’s Human Rights Week, UAB proudly hosted His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama’s participation in a scientific symposium/dialogue titled “Neuroplasticity and Healing.” His Holiness The Dalai Lama commented and discussed the research and treatments developed by Dr. Edward Taub (UAB Department of Psychology) and Dr. Michael Merzenich of the University of California, San Francisco, which are based on the plasticity of the brain in adults. The event was moderated by Norman Doidge, M.D. author of the best-selling popular account of neuroplasticity, The Brain That Challenges Itself. Dr. Thupten Jinpa, authority on Buddhism and Tibetan language and culture, served as interpreter for His Holiness.

"UAB is the premiere place in the world to get treatment for stroke if you have a movement problem," Doidge said, referring to the Taub Therapy Clinic.

"This is a national treasure.

There have been 600 papers written about what Taub has discovered." - Norman Doidge, M.D., moderator

Donning traditional maroon and saffron robes and a white UAB visor, the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader spoke about his lifelong interest in science, dating from his childhood explorations with a toy train and toy car, and an old movie projector. "For a short moment, I would play," he told an invited audience in Jemison Concert Hall. "Then I started to investigate. I think I had more interest in mechanical things than in my studies - hours of reading and memorizing texts.

I sincerely followed the teachings, but out of investigation."

The Dalai Lama's interest in neuroplasticity goes back three decades. Dr. Norman Doidge, a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, researcher and author who holds positions at the University of Toronto and Columbia University, defined neuroplasticity as "the capacity of the brain to change its structure. For 400 years, we thought the brain was fixed and unchangeable. Neuroplasticity is now mainstream teaching within neuroscience."

Doidge lauded Dr. Edward Taub, a UAB behavioral neuroscientist whose groundbreaking work into Constraint-Induced Movement therapy has helped the "rewiring" of brains of stroke victims, patients with traumatic brain injuries and children with cerebral palsy.

Each panel member gave outlines of their research with the aid of slides and videos, the Dalai Lama posing questions on such topics as memory loss, states of consciousness, training the mind, and the confluence of Eastern and Western science. "The purpose of this study is to expand our knowledge and further our understanding, deeper, deeper," said the Dalai Lama. "Training the mind is not for the next life or heaven, or what Buddhists call nirvana. These things are simply for our present life."

Merzenich pointed out that the meeting of East and West is a collaboration, and much work still needs to be done. "Neuroplasticity can help a lot, but it's not complete," he said. "We still have to operate with the complexities of real life. One of our goals is to get each person to be in charge of their own self-correction. The event concluded with participation from the audience followed by the giving of katas (a white scarf, in Tibetan tradition, given as an offering when visiting a temple, shrine, guru or teacher) to Dr. Taub, Dr. Doidge, Dr. Merzenich and Dr. Watts.

ON DISPLAY With the help of Dr. Robert Sorge and his family, the department participated in the making of prayer flags to welcome His Holiness to UAB and the City of Birmingham. Other local artists, schools, organizations and religious groups contributed to the display across the city comprised of thousands of hand decorated flags. Prayer flags were on display at Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts, Sojourns, Space One Eleven, Rojo, West Elm furniture store, Kelly Ingram Park, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the Birmingham Museum of Art.

alumni

SPOTLIGHT Lindsay Sutton, Ph.D., graduated from the Lifespan Developmental doctoral program in psychology in 2013. She was recently featured in UAB Magazine and the www.uab.edu homepage.

By Tara Hulen Photo by Steve Wood

The Scientist Behind the Sale from UAB Magazine

Lindsay Sutton and the psychology of advertising Lindsay Sutton could have taken her UAB doctoral degree in developmental psychology, accepted a job offer in Washington, D.C., and spent her career following the typical path of most developmental psychologists into government or academia.

Instead, she took a more colorful, unconventional route, signing up with an advertising agency. Sutton started working as a research psychologist and assistant strategic planner at Birmingham’s Intermark Group in 2013. While it’s a rare career choice in her field, Sutton says it’s a good fit for her—and an opportunity to put her education and curiosity about human behavior to use in creative ways. Advertising builds upon the emotional reactions and cognitive processes that influence people’s choices and opinions, and Sutton’s studies focused heavily on decision analytics. Adding science-based research gives the agency a new, powerfully effective means of helping clients identify and connect to a target audience, she explains.

Dads in Depth For example, one client wanted to promote a series of paint-ball games, and Sutton helped aim the message in the right direction.

“Women or moms are usually the purse-keepers and decision makers when it comes to shopping, particularly with gifts like toys,” she says. But women are also usually wary of a toy that looks like a gun, she adds.

“This was a case of understanding the audience,” Sutton says. “We shifted gears and did a case study on Generation X dads and who they were and what they wanted to be.” It turns out that Gen X dads want to be engaged in their children’s lives and to be the superhero who brings home the cool toys, meaning they would likely view the paint-ball games as something they would buy to play with their kids, she says. “There are definitely empirically validated ways to make an emotional connection—to really reach the person you are seeking.”

Automatic for the People Sutton explains that people are “on automatic processing”—we simply can’t ponder why we make the countless decisions we do daily. The psychology of advertising “capitalizes on some of those automatic processes,” she says. “It’s not about deceiving consumers; rather, it’s about talking to them in ways that take into account patterns of human behavior, thought, and memory.”

She can tell you a lot about human behavior from her previous stints as a bartender and as a corrections officer for the Hoover, Ala., police department. Those experiences inspired the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native to attend UAB to earn a master’s degree in public health, concentrating on outcomes research, and her Ph.D. in developmental psychology, with a focus on statistics and decision analysis. She met Intermark’s CEO, Jake McKenzie, at UAB, and a career match was made.

“They’ve really encouraged me to be a psychologist,” Sutton says of her Intermark colleagues. “They’ve given me the opportunity to start some really novel research.” Currently, she is conducting an in-depth analysis of the millennial generation—the children or grandchildren of baby boomers. “I want to inform how we address millennials,” she says. “They’re slated to have the most purchasing power of any generation in history.” Often labeled as the “me, me, me generation” or “trophy generation” for a sense of entitlement, they also exhibit a strong drive to get ahead and make a mark in the world, Sutton explains.

“That’s where UAB’s tradition of solid, sound research comes in,” Sutton says. “I had amazing researchers as mentors, and I got to present my behavior models in front of some of the world’s best.

“Intermark took a chance on me, and I love that I can stay true to my research roots but be innovative in that space, too.”

-Lindsay Sutton, Ph.D.

ELEVENTH ANN UA L

Distinguished Alumni Awards The eleventh annual UAB Department of Psychology Distinguished Alumni Awards were held on October 7 at the Spencer Honors House as part of the College of Arts and Sciences Homecoming Week celebration. The Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award was given to Dr. Paul J. DeMarco, Jr., Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Dean for the School of Interdisciplinary and Graduate Studies at the University of Louisville. The Distinguished Alumni Service Award was given to The Honorable William A. Bell, Sr., Mayor of the City of Birmingham. The opening address was given by Dr. Karlene Ball, University Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology followed by remarks from Dr. David Schwebel, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Associate Dean for Research in the Sciences. Dr. Maria Hopkins, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of Undergraduate Studies stated criteria for each award and welcomed the 2013 recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Service Award, Scott Moran, who delivered remarks and presented the award to Mayor Bell. Dr. Mike Sloane, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of the UAB Honors Program introduced Dr. DeMarco who delivered a lecture entitled, “Non-invasive Assessment of Activity in Parallel Visual Pathways.”

criteria The purpose of the UAB Department of Psychology Distinguished Scholar Alumni Award is to recognize alumni of the department for groundbreaking scientific research and scholarly accomplishments. These exceptional individuals bring pride and distinction to UAB and to the Department of Psychology and in doing so serve as outstanding role models for current and future students.

The purpose of the UAB Department of

Dr. Paul J. DeMarco, Jr. (left) with Dr. Mike Sloane (right). Dr. Sloane nominated Dr. DeMarco for the award early this fall and then introduced him as 2014 recipient of the Scholar Award. Dr. DeMarco was one of the first undergraduates to work as a research assistant in Dr. Sloane’s lab before graduating from UAB in 1984. Throughout Dr. DeMarco’s career his research has been strongly funded and published in top journals in addition to his administrative accomplishments.

Psychology Distinguished Service Alumni Award is to recognize an alumnus of the department for exemplary leadership, outstanding human qualities, and contributions to the university and society. These exceptional individuals bring pride and distinction to UAB and to the Department of Psychology and in doing so serve as outstanding role models for current and future students.

Scott Moran (left) with Dr. Karlene Ball (right). Scott Moran, 2013 recipient of the Service Award, presented this year’s Service Award to Mayor William Bell as his wife, Dr. Sharon Bell accepted the award on his behalf.

Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award 2004

Kristofer J. Hagglund, Ph.D., A.B.P.P.

2005

Dwayne W. Godwin, Ph.D.

2006

Roger B. Fillingim, Ph.D.

2007

Deborah J. Wiebe, Ph.D.

2008

Clancy B. Blair, Ph.D.

2009

Eddie Harmon-Jones, Ph.D.

2010

Robert R. Edwards, Ph.D.

2011

Mallory O. Johnson, Ph.D.

2012

Katherine E. Stewart, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Family members of Dr. DeMarco and Mayor Bell enjoy conversation during the reception following the awards ceremony.

2013

William J. Tyler, Ph.D.

2014

Paul J. DeMarco Jr., Ph.D.

Faculty members, students and alumni also got a chance to meet award recipients and their families to discuss their interests and achievements at UAB.

Distinguished Alumni Service Award

As one of the longest serving public officials in the City of Birmingham Mayor Bell has generated more than $197 million for Birmingham City Schools while UAB has received over $87 million for capital improvements during his tenure.

2010

Robin Gurwitch, Ph.D.

2011

Sherri Van Pelt, MPA, OTR/L

2012

Lisa F. Huffman, Ph.D.

2013

Scott Moran

2014

William A. Bell, Sr.

Where Are They Now?

Katharine E. Stewart, Ph.D.

Luke Stoeckel, Ph.D.

Aaron D. Fobian, Ph.D.

Sadhvi Batra, B.S.

has been named Vice President for Academic Planning and Quality of the 17-campus University of North Carolina. Stewart, who joined the staff of UNC General Administration last year as Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Learning Strategies, was promoted to the new position effective July 1.

Luke Stoeckel has accepted a position as Director of Neuroscience at the NIH National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, & Metabolic Diseases (DEM).

This is a new administrative position (July 2014) with an objective to develop a program for neuroscience research support at the NIDDK DEM.

has accepted the position of assistant professor in the Division of Behavioral Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry effective September 1, 2014.

has been selected as an ambassador for The White House’s Initiative on Asians and Pacific Islanders. The Initiative works collaboratively with the White House Office of Public Engagement and the designated Federal agencies to increase Asian American and Pacific Islander participation in programs in education, commerce, business, health, human services, housing, environment, arts, agriculture, labor and employment, transportation, justice, veterans affairs and economic and community development.

A graduate of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, Stewart graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelors degree in psychology. She later earned doctoral degrees in clinical medical psychology and public health policy and organization from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Luke Stoeckel is a licensed clinical neuropsychologist who specializes in patientoriented neuroscience research. He completed his undergraduate studies at Harvard College, his PhD in Medical/Clinical Psychology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and his internship and postdoctoral training at MGH and Harvard Medical School (HMS).

In addition to her duties as UNC vice president, Stewart is a professor of public health sciences at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Prior to joining UNC General Administration, she served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and professor of health behavior and health education at the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Prior to taking this new position at NIH, he served as the Director of Clinical Neuroscience and Staff Training at the MGH-Harvard Center for Addiction Medicine; Assistant in Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, MGH; and an Assistant Professor in Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, HMS. He will maintain Adjunct faculty appointments at MGH and Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Fobian was recruited from the UAB Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine where she is currently serving as a psychology postdoctoral fellow. She received her B.A. in Psychology from Samford University in 2008, an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from UAB in 2010, and after completing her Clinical Internship at Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, she received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from UAB in 2013.

She is a well-trained, research-oriented psychologist who will divide her time between providing clinical care and teaching, and developing a research program. Her major research interests include sleep, metabolism, and obesity in adolescents.

Sadhvi is a Masters in Public Health candidate at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. During her undergrad, she studied Neuroscience and Philosophy. When her nose was not in her books, she was actively promoting the need for sexual health education in the Deep South through her grassroots organization, Advocates Today, Doctors Tomorrow.

The Mind as Medicine From UAB Magazine, article by Sarah C.P. Williams, photos by Steve Wood

Harnessing the Brain’s Power and Flexibility to Help Heal the Body Lying inside an fMRI machine that’s tracking her brain activity, a college student grasps a hot block in her hand. It’s just hot enough to cause her some pain—seven on a scale of one to ten, she tells a researcher. Above her, a picture flashes; it’s a snapshot of her boyfriend. Suddenly, the pain dulls. It’s a five now, she says. At the same time, the image of her brain—with active areas lit up in reds and yellows— shifts. The dulled pain isn’t just her imagination; her brain is sending fewer pain signals and more reward signals.

“For many people, a picture of a loved one will actually cut their pain in half,” says Jarred Younger, Ph.D., a UAB experimental psychologist who conducted this test.

The same goes for hypnosis, acupuncture, and sugar pills, he’s found. In each case, a person’s brain responds to pain in a new way, even when the treatment has no rational basis.

Anyone who has learned a new language, memorized lines for a play, studied for a test, or watched a child begin to understand the world around them can easily grasp the idea that the human brain is capable of learning new facts, words, and concepts.

But UAB scientists like Younger, probing the full capability of the brain, are interested in teaching it new ways of interacting with the human body. By shaking up the way the brain processes information and communicates with the nerves winding throughout the body, each researcher is harnessing the power of the brain to heal.

DR. BUREL GOODIN “Once we show the effect of hypnosis and love and the placebo response in the brain,” he says, “then we will have multiple important brain regions that we can target with neuromodulatory techniques to better treat chronic pain and other conditions.”

Placebo POWER Popular culture often associates the idea of the placebo effect— giving a patient a nonmedical treatment, such as a fake pill, to make him or her feel better—with malingerers; the assumption is that the patient must not truly be sick or in pain. Scientists who study the actual physiological and molecular underpinnings of the placebo effect, though, know this is far from true.

“Just because a psychological method of dealing with pain is effective, it doesn’t mean the pain is all in your head,” explains UAB clinical health psychologist Burel Goodin, Ph.D. That very real pain is the focus of Goodin’s research, and recently he identified a vicious cycle of chronic pain and sleep deprivation that could point the way to a potential new solution for both.

When a person suffers chronic pain—rather than a brief injury—his or her body produces higher levels of hormones and chemicals that are normally reserved for a quick “fight-or-flight” response. For the months or years that the pain lasts, the person’s body remains on constant heavy alert, which can affect sleep. But Goodin, while studying patients with chronic back pain, discovered that the relationship between sleep and pain isn’t a one-way street. A lack of sleep also changes the way people respond to pain, making them more sensitive—not just to their chronic pain, but to all sorts of painful stimuli. “It promotes a negative downward spiral,” Goodin says.

With this new link in mind, Goodin is studying how to break the cycle by teaching patients how to manage their stress and improve sleep habits. “When it comes to chronic pain today, it’s not unusual to have a pain psychologist on your care team,”

Goodin says. “That’s not because we think your pain is made up. It’s because there’s a physiological link between your mental state and your pain.”

As scientists learn more about this connection, Younger says, they’ll be better able to fine-tune treatments for individual patients. In one set of studies—comparing morphine with a placebo drug and then acupuncture to a placebo needle-sticking—Younger found that a patient’s beliefs about whether a treatment would work, not the treatment itself, most heavily affected the brain. “What people believed they were getting was more important than what they actually received,” he says. “It’s the power of expectancy.”

Now, he says, researchers need to pinpoint how to harness this knowledge to benefit patients—prescribing sugar pills and sham acupuncture treatments won’t be the best path forward.

But if Younger can learn how to mimic the pain relief that occurs when someone sees a picture of a loved one, he might be able to apply it more broadly.

Cognition

Communication

Coordination

Restoring COMMUNICATION, Regaining FUNCTION Seventeen years after a stroke that rendered his right arm nearly paralyzed, the 53-year-old “patient number 10” still struggled to use his right side. Despite being right-handed, he reported only rarely using his right hand in daily tasks—he had learned to rely on his left hand for everything from brushing his teeth to using a fork to opening a door. But Edward Taub, Ph.D.—a behavioral neuroscientist and University Professor in the UAB Department of Psychology—didn’t see any reason the patient couldn’t use his right hand again. The nerves and muscles of the right arm and hand were intact, Taub observed, and the man was healthy and competent. The brain just needed a reminder of how to communicate with the limb.

Rehabilitation

Taub and Uswatte have stepped back to examine why CI therapy works so well. When they’ve scanned the brains of patients before and after CI therapy, they’ve seen clear differences: After therapy, there are expanded areas of the gray matter of the brain associated with an affected limb.

“This was so out of left field that folks would read our papers, and even though we clearly reported a structural change, they still didn’t believe it,” says Uswatte. But Uswatte and Taub have repeated the brain scans in different patient groups and repeatedly obtained the same finding—changing a person’s behavior changes his or her brain. That, in turn, can change physical capabilities.

For 12 days, patient 10 had a new morning routine: sliding a hard splint onto his left wrist, then propping his left arm up in a sling. As he carried out assigned, supervised tasks, he had no choice but to use his much weaker right side. He stacked blocks with his right hand, maneuvered eating utensils with his right hand, and twisted keys into keyholes with his right hand.

Several months later, Taub’s research group followed up with patient 10.

Where once he reported only rarely using his right arm, the man said he now used his right side nearly as often as he did before his stroke. Without drugs or surgery, without anything except for the power of the man’s own brain, Taub had help him regain function in a limb assumed useless.

In the 1970s and ’80s, Taub’s research contributed to a major shift in thinking about neuroplasticity—the ability of the brain to change, grow, and repair itself. Instead of ending in childhood, as most scientists had believed, this malleability had the potential to extend into adulthood. Taub used this discovery to develop Constraint-Induced Movement therapy (CI therapy), and over the past two decades, he—in collaboration with UAB clinical psychologist and professor Gitendra Uswatte, Ph.D.—has used it to help thousands of stroke patients. The therapy centers around the idea that when the body is forced to use only one limb, the brain will adapt, strengthening its communication with that part of the body.

On average, a patient who goes through CI therapy uses his or her affected limb five times more afterward. And 97 percent of stroke patients who qualify for treatment—they must be otherwise healthy—see a clinically significant level of improvement. But the two researchers have also adapted the approach for other patient populations. Taub and Uswatte have helped hemiplegic patients with tightly fisted hands who can barely move a finger before treatment, enabling them to grasp and pick up objects after therapy. They’ve teamed up with Children’s of Alabama to help children with cerebral palsy gain new movement ability. And they’ve even applied CI therapy to stroke patients who have aphasia—an impairment in the ability to speak.

“We don’t tie down the tongue,” Taub explains. “But we strongly discourage gestures, pointing, grunting, and other nonverbal communication they’ve relied on. We confine them to just speech.”

DR. GITENDRA USWATTE (left) & DR. EDWARD TAUB (right) “The therapy takes advantage of the natural ability of the brain to adapt to changes in the environment,” says Uswatte.

“We just help the brain repair itself,” Taub adds..

Training the AGING Brain UAB experimental psychologist Karlene Ball, Ph.D., has spent four decades studying how to keep the brain quick and alert as people age or become afflicted with disease. She has developed computer-based training programs that, over 10 one-hour sessions, improve both attention span and reaction time. In fact, people who use one of her programs not only get better at the tasks on the computer screen, but also have better concentration and quicker responses to stimuli in their everyday lives. The elderly patients who complete her training, for example, become better drivers, less likely to get in an accident even 10 years later.

“It used to be that people thought your brain function declined as you got older, and there was not much you could do about it,” says Ball, University Professor, Department of Psychology chair, and director of the Edward R. Roybal Center for Research on Applied Gerontology.

“But our work has shown that the brain is very adaptive and, given the particular situation, can continue to learn and improve throughout the lifespan.”

In one task, participants are asked to identify an object in the center of the computer screen while they’re simultaneously paying attention to objects on the edges. “At the end of the program, people say, ‘Oh, you made it slower,’” Ball describes. “But in reality, it stayed the same speed; they got faster.”

Ball has established the effect that “brain training” can have on the lives of patients—in addition to becoming better drivers, people who have completed her program are less likely to experience cognitive decline over the entire next decade. Her approach has also been shown to prevent the “brain fog” that often accompanies chemotherapy treatments and to help ease some symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis.

HEALING help

“Our work has shown that the brain is very adaptive… and can continue to learn and improve throughout the lifespan.”

Like Taub and Uswatte, Ball now wants to understand why the training programs work so well. How does a computer program cause the brain to change, and how does that make people pay better attention to their surroundings? To find the answers, she is planning a study to analyze patients’ brains in an fMRI scanner before and after treatment.

Dr. Rajesh Kana Joins Experts as Co-Editor of e-book Associate Professor Dr. Rajesh Kana was invited by the journal “Frontiers in Human Neuroscience” to compile a special volume on brain connectivity in autism by consulting with cutting edge neuroscience researchers in autism. Dr. Kana then asked a few experts in the field, from different universities in the U.S., to join him as co-editors in this venture. This research topic of the Frontiers in Human Neuroscience addresses “Brain Connectivity in Autism” primarily from cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging perspectives.

UAB researchers are only beginning to get an understanding of how they can use the brain’s complicated control panel as a tool to ease the symptoms of disease or improve a person’s quality of life. The brain alone may not have the ability to heal bones, cure an illness, or treat an infection, but psychological tweaks that optimize the brain’s functioning could be coupled with medical approaches in an effort to amplify the effects of treatment.

“There are so many ways that the mind can truly affect how the body operates, in very fundamental ways,” says Younger.

The papers in this volume were divided among five editors including Dr. Kana. He also contributed by submitting an empirical neuroimaging paper examining different types of connectivity in autism. Along with his co-editors, Dr. Kana contributed to writing the I ntroductory chapter of the ebook. To read this publication in its entirety, please visit journal.frontiersin.org/ ResearchTopic/1107

UAB Psychology Bids Farewell to

Dr. Carl E. McFarland, Jr. Faculty, Colleagues, Students, Staff and Friends, It is with warm wishes that we announce the retirement of Dr. Carl McFarland, Jr. effective December 31. He is highly regarded as one of the university’s institutions and his leaving marks the end of an era for UAB and the Department of Psychology.

He has been an esteemed member of the faculty for 40 years, and he will be greatly missed by students and colleagues alike.

For all this time, he has truly invested in his students’ curiosity to bring together knowledge and skills that would impact their lives.

He has taught literally thousands of students during his tenure at UAB. Carl is the real essence of a teacher.

“

“It's not the end for me, ladies and gentlemen, it's the beginning of a new era…”

-Tommy Lasorda

As Chair of the department, he took undeniably brave stances to challenge the status quo and worked to build a department that is highly visible, collaborative and successful. He expected this from himself and others. We are indebted to his vision and commitment for propelling us to our present day success.

KARLENE BALL, PH.D., CHAIR

A STUDENT PERSPECTIVE

“

“Unlike most undergraduate programs, both at UAB and nationally, the Neuroscience Major has Dr. McFarland, a faculty advisor who is constantly available and is genuinely concerned with the success of all of his students. We owe so much to him. With his wealth of experience in academia, Dr. McFarland has been able to guide us through our undergraduate years. He has shown that senior faculty are not only approachable and interested in their students, but also that they crave our thoughts and input.

Time after time, he has proven that he truly cares about us not only as students, but as people. He has dramatically shaped my undergraduate experience.

Dr. McFarland’s serious-whenneeded yet spontaneously lighthearted personality will undoubtedly be a tough one to replace. “ -Ameen Barghi, Senior

1982 Geopsychology Softball Team Front Row: Mary Spiers, Karen Pendergrass, Deb Wiebe, Mary Frances Thetford Second Row: Jim Cox, Carl McFarland, Robin Gurwitch, Bryan Connell, Joanne Arnold, Don Williams, Paul Blanton.

Dr. McFarland’s career at UAB began in 1975 and has shaped the UAB Department of Psychology into what it is today. Dr. McFarland served as Chair of the Department of Psychology from 1982 - 2008. He currently serves as Co-director of the Undergraduate Neuroscience Program which he has developed into one of the top undergraduate programs in the country.

In Numbers

50+

Dr. McFarland hired over 50 faculty members in his tenure as Chair including 19/29 of our current faculty members.

$11M

As chair, Dr. McFarland worked tirelessly to increase funding from $200K to $11M placing UAB at an all-time high ranking of #3 nationally.

20K

Dr. McFarland has taught over 20,000 students in his career .

CAS Door Decoration Competition HOMECOMING

WEEK 2014

This year for the annual CAS Door Decoration Competition, UAB Psi Chi executed an award winning design that landed Psychology a Second Place prize in the overall competition.

Artists: Catherine Jones and Jessica Davis Decoration: Lily Clarkson, Schuler Lawson and Kate Wesson-Sides

Psi Chi News

Neuroscience Fall Forum Pictured above are the 2014 Psi Chi officers at the department picnic held September 12. (see more on page 15) The UAB Chapter of Psi Chi has had a busy semester full of events to engage psychology majors and increase membership and funding. In September, Psi Chi hosted a general interest meeting, co-sponsored the department fall picnic and organized a Charity Dodgeball Tournament where proceeds were given to Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention Walk which they participated in November 2.

In October, Psi Chi held a study group, a NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) interest meeting and a “Phobia Mixer Party” to welcome new Psi Chi and Psychology Club members. NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI advocates for access to services, treatment, supports and research and is steadfast in its commitment to raise awareness and build a community for hope for all of those in need. Psi Chi is encouraging members this semester to attend meetings and get involved with the NAMI organization. They also hosted a Mindfulness Symposium where they showed the documentary Dhamma Brothers.

The documentary was introduced by former prison psychologist and director of mental health for the Alabama Department of Corrections, Dr. Ron Cavanaugh.

The documentary was preceded by findings on the effects of meditation within the psychology, neuroscience, and medical literature. Research conducted by University of Alabama from the Donaldson Prison was also highlighted at the event.

In addition to holding weekly events, Psi Chi has continued to surpass their goals and strive for success. They have already surpassed their fundraising goal of $1,000 and are looking to double their goal by 2015.

Psi Chi will continue to sell Department of Psychology t-shirts (gray shirts pictured on officers) for $20. T-shirts (short-sleeved) can be purchased online at https:// squareup.com/market/uab-psi-chi. For more information about Psi Chi please email uabpsychpsichi@gmail.com.

IN THE COMMUNITY: The Birmingham Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes was hosted at UAB Campus Green on Nov. 1 and UAB Psychology was on-site to help. The Department of Psychology was a co-sponsor of the event along with United Healthcare, Publix, HealthSouth, and Regions and many others who came out to help “Stop Diabetes.” The event is part of the American Diabetes's Association’s “Step Out” campaign which has raised over $150,000 through the Birmingham event.

The 2014 Fall Forum for the Undergraduate Neuroscience Program was held October 3 at The Edge of Chaos for senior students to present their research to their peers and mentors. Director of the Undergraduate Neuroscience Program, Dr. Anne Thiebert gave an introduction as well as Co-Director, Dr. Carl McFarland. The event was attended by UNP students and their families, program faculty and staff and prospective students of the program.

Presenters for the event were as follows: Kristen Smith (Mentors: Drs. Emma Perez-Costas & Miguel Melendez-Ferro) "Assessment of Cytochrome c Oxidase Dysfunction in the Substantia Nigra/Ventral Tegmental Area in Schizophrenia" Introduction: Ashleigh Tomkovich.

Ameen Barghi (Mentor: Dr. Edward Taub) "White Matter Integrity in Patients with Chronic Hemiparesis given Constraint Induced (CI) Therapy: A Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study" Introduction: Jarrod Hicks.

Bryanna Paulukaitis (Mentor: Dr. David Sweatt) "H2A.Z Exchange as an Epigenetic Regulator of Memory" Introduction: Lauren Cabaniss.

Kristin Ford (Mentor: Dr. Amy Amara) "A Novel Evaluation of Daytime Vigilance in Patients with Parkinson's Disease Using a Virtual Reality StreetCrossing Task" Introduction: Courtney Walker.

A.D. Howard (Mentor: Dr. Scott Wilson) "Dosedependent effect of ubiquitin over-expression on fear conditioning" Introduction: Sara Robicheaux.

Sarah Terry (Mentor: Dr. Burel Goodin) "Effects of daily caffeine consumption on sleep quality and pain sensitivity: A mediation study" Introduction: Claire Crider

UAB Early Head Start Program Annual Health Fair The UAB Early Head Start Program’s (EHSP) Health Fair was held September 26 at the Birmingham Zoo. The first Health Fair was held in 2006 and was designed as a way to partner with local community agencies and provide families with information about good health practices, prevention and safety techniques, as well as complete necessary program screenings. To aid in the compliance of tracking essential hearing & vision screenings, the Health Coordinator, in conjunction with all coordinating staff, came up with the idea of having a health fair for enrolled families. In collaboration with community providers, the UAB EHSP’s Health Fair evolved from an abstract idea into being one of the best attended socialization outings for our program.

The Health Fair is held at the Birmingham Zoo and participants are treated to an educational activity in the form of a Zoo visit at the completion of a provider checklist.

The UAB EHSP partners with local agencies such as the Jefferson County DepartAbove: 4th year Developmental Graduate student Sarah ment of Health, Children’s of Alabama, Alabama Medicaid Agency, Sparks Clinics, Childcare Resources, Family Guidance Center, Birmingham Police Department, Edwards Leger, TRIP Lab Research Assistant/ Psychology Birmingham Fire and Rescue, Oasis Women and Children Counseling Center, and a Undergrad Morgan Parr, 3rd Year Developmental Graduate host of other local agencies. Upon completion of their provider checklist, the student Haley Johnson, and Dr. Kristi Guest representing participants are then given admission to the Zoo for a day of family fun!

UAB Department of Psychology

2014 - 2015

Psychology Interns

Graduate Student AWARDS Haley Johnson (lifespan developmental)

Neena Cassell

Christopher Cranston

Andrew Fedor

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

UNIVERSITY OF TULSA

KENT STATE UNIVERSITY

Jennifer Green

Sylvia Huang

Judiann McNiff Jones

UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS

Lisa Kasper

Joanna Sadler

Jennifer Travis Seidl

OKLAHOMA ST. UNIVERSITY

OHIO UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Was named recipient of the Civitan Emerging Scholars Fellowship that began Oct. 1 and will continue through Sept. 30, 2015.

Haley earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Birmingham Southern College and began pursuing her doctoral degree in lifespan developmental psychology here at UAB. Haley’s research is focused on gaining a better understanding of the transportation needs of individuals with developmental disabilities, specifically Attention-deficit/Hyperacitiy Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

“The funding I have received from CIRC will allow me to complete my masters thesis/dissertation project, the Research On Autism and Driving Study (ROADS). The specific goal of this project is to examine the impact of the social impairments seen in ASD on driving performance,” says Haley.

Haley works alongside her mentor, Assistant Professor of Psychology Dr. Despina Stavrinos and the members of the TRIP (Translation Research for Injury Prevention) laboratory. The TRIP lab works closely with CRAG (Center for Research on Applied Gerontology) which is directed by Department Chair, Dr. Karlene Ball.

Psychology

FALL PICNIC The 2014 Fall “Welcome Back” Picnic was held September 12 at the UAB MiniPark for students, faculty, staff and friends of the department. Full Moon BBQ was served to all in attendance while they enjoyed music and conversation with peers. Psi Chi, Psychology Club and the Undergraduate Neuroscience Program setup tables selling snowcones, cotton candy and even baked goods in the shape of brains as dessert items while sharing information about their organizations.

Partnering organizations were also invited to attend to give students more information about becoming involved with their groups. Glenwood Autism and Behavioral Health Center, Campfire and The Crisis Center were a few of the organizations who spoke with students and faculty.

Raffle prizes were awarded every 30 minutes and lucky winners received visa gift cards, Snoozy’s gift cards and gift baskets full of goodies.

Faculty

Psychology

UPDATE

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Top Stories from 2014

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Mary Frances Thetford, M.Ed.

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PHILADELPHIA, PA MARCH 2014

FROM YOU! We want to hear about your professional and personal achievements. For placement in our magazine, please send information to lnvard@uab.edu.

Thank you to those who contributed information for this edition of the UAB Psychology Update. Please share this update with colleagues and friends.

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