New Paper in Press from the SCN Lab!

Dr. Tabak and Dr. Teed recently published a paper with colleagues from UCLA, Dartmouth College, and Carnegie Mellon University in which they describe null results of oxytocin and vasopressin administration across a range of social tasks. Dr. Teed was instrumental in learning how to implement two different types of post-hoc statistical techniques to assess the sensitivity of our findings.

Here is the full citation:

Tabak, B. A., Teed, A. R., Castle, E., Dutcher, J. M., Meyer, M. L., Bryan, R., Irwin, M. R., Lieberman, M.D., & Eisenberger, N. I. (2019). Null results of oxytocin and vasopressin administration across a range of social cognitive and behavioral paradigms: Evidence from a randomized controlled trial. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 107, 124-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.04.019

Stejara Dinulescu Presents at the SMU Hamilton and Marr Undergraduate Research Scholarship Conference

In April, Senior Undergraduate Stejara Dinulescu presented our paper, currently under review, examining the association between social cognitive ability and self-referential processing. Congratulations to Stejara on being one of the few scholars selected to give a talk and on delivering a wonderful presentation

Dr. Adam Teed presents his work at the Texas Universities' Educational Statistics And Psychometrics Alliance at SMU!

In March, Dr. Adam Teed presented a paper currently under review showing a series of null behavioral effects of oxytocin and vasopressin administration across a range of socioemotional tasks. More specifically, Dr. Teed described how he implemented equivalence and Bayesian hypothesis testing to examine the null effects. This was a very impressive invitation considering he was the only cognitive neuroscientist/non-statistician in the room.

Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarship Awarded to Stejara Dinulescu!

Congratulations to the SCN Lab's Stejara Dinulescu who was awarded a Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarship for the 2018-2019 Academic Year! This award will be used to examine data from our Social Sensitivity Study. Specifically, Stejara will be examining the association between self referential memory and empathic accuracy.

Welcome a new postdoc in the SCN Lab: Dr. Adam Teed

The SCN lab would like to welcome Dr. Adam Teed. Dr. Teed earned his PhD in Cognition and Neuroscience at The University of Texas at Dallas and recently completed a postdoc at the UTD Center for Brain Health. We are excited to have Dr. Teed join our lab due to his expertise in neuroimaging methods and analysis, as well as his previous work on the effects of oxytocin and vasopressin on neural activation associated with several complex social processes.

Talha Alvi presents his research at the Society for Affective Science conference in Los Angeles!

In April, Talha presented his interesting work showing a link between social anxiety and social cognitive impairment. In addition to attending the SAS conference, Talha was able check out the canals in Venice, the Santa Monica Pier, and most importantly, Dr. Tabak's favorite sushi restaurant: Sugarfish.

Dr. Tabak and the SCN Lab receive grant from the Jerry M. Lewis, M.D. Mental Health Research Foundation

Dr. Tabak and the SCN Lab will receive funding from the Jerry M. Lewis, M.D. Mental Health Research Foundation for their project entitled, "Oxytocin as a Biomarker of Social Sensitivity and Interpersonal Functioning." Congratulations to the entire SCN Lab team!

Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarships Awarded to Rachel Mumaw and Bret Arata!

Congratulations to the SCN Lab's Rachel Mumaw and Bret Arata who were awarded Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarships for the 2017-2018 Academic Year! These awards will be used to examine data from our Social Sensitivity Study. Rachel will be investigating the links between social anxiety and empathy, and Bret will be examining sensory sensitivity and empathy.

Welcome Talha Alvi to the SCN Lab!

We are very excited to welcome our new doctoral student, Talha Alvi! Talha recently completed his Masters in Psychology in Education at Columbia University and moved back to Dallas (his home town) to join the lab. 

Welcome to our lab website!

Dr. Tabak is a new assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at SMU! 

Dr. Tabak and the Social and Clinical Neuroscience (SCN) Lab at Southern Methodist University invites applications from prospective graduate students for the Fall of 2017. This is a unique opportunity for students interested in obtaining a doctorate in clinical psychology while engaged in interdisciplinary biopsychological research.

Additional information about the clinical psychology doctoral program at SMU can be found here.

The Social and Clinical Neuroscience Lab is also recruiting undergraduate research assistants.