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I completed an interdisciplinary PhD (2026) at Case Western Reserve University, between the Departments of Psychological Sciences and Philosophy.  My research draws on experimental methods and theoretical frameworks from psychology, philosophy, and neuroscience. I have used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to better understand the dynamics of the neural see-saw between regions of the brain's Task Positive Network (TPN) and Default Mode Network (DMN).

According to Opposing Domains Theory, this antagonism reflects an organizing principle of the brain that keeps a broadly non-social, analytic mode of reasoning separate from a broadly social, empathic mode of understanding. Because the two modes suppress one another, we cannot fully engage both at once, or easily translate between them. My dissertation tested this where it has practical consequences: health messaging. We found that fact-based ,biomedical accounts of pathology and empathic, narrative based accounts of individuals coping with pathology, had opposing effects on these two networks.  This provides support for the power of story telling - and evidence as to why 'facts struggle to change minds'.   I am currently using this research to better understand the neural signatures of addiction and sustained recovery, and their implications for how we conceptualize these diagnoses and support sustained behavior change.

I am now pursuing a Masters in Social Work at CWRU's Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences.

Email: jpf66@case.edu

**Google Scholar link is HERE