Research

ADHD is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that can have a negative impact on a person's functionality (but not always). The purpose of my research is to help better understand how ADHD presents itself to further aid children, adolescents, and adults, with ADHD to experience improved cognitive, academic, and functional outcomes.

Being easily distractible is a common symptom of ADHD. However, distractions can emerge from the external environment (e.g., background noise, phone notifications), but they can also emerge internally in your mind (e.g., mind-wandering/day-dreaming, recurring negative thoughts). Currently, my research focuses on understanding if individuals with ADHD are equally susceptible to these different forms of distraction, or are they especially vulnerable to one type of distraction.

Additionally, I have a second line of research that stems from my OB/GYN research prior to graduate school. I have continued this work in collaboration with Dr. Beth Bailey where we examine how prenatal experiences (e.g., in-utero tobacco or marijuana exposure) impact perinatal birth outcomes and cognitive development. 

I would love to eventually combine these two lines of research by longitudinally examining the relationship between prenatal experiences and later onset ADHD.