Sarah J. Short
Position title: Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Psychology
Email: sjshort@wisc.edu
Department:
Educational Psychology
Education:
Ph.D. in Biological Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
Postdoctoral in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Research Description:
Inspired by a longstanding interest in neuropsychiatric illness, my graduate and postdoctoral research focused on identifying early determinants of neurodevelopmental disorders. Under this framework, I have worked with animal models and humans in research that investigated prenatal influences on brain and behavioral development, bidirectional relationships between peripheral and central biological systems in primates, and neuro–structural patterns related to cognitive capacity in young children.
Now as an assistant professor and the Dorothy King Chair in Educational Psychology and an affiliate faculty member for the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, I work closely with multidisciplinary teams from UW–Madison and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as the MPI of the NICHD R01 that funds the original sample (Brain and Early Experience Study – ‘BEE’) that will be followed in this current proposal. The BEE study investigates the link between poverty, brain development, and cognitive processes that facilitate learning, self–monitoring, and decision–making in children. My specific area of expertise concerns the analysis of neuroimaging data, measurement of various biomarkers, and joint analysis of these measures with more qualitative data.
Research Key Words:
Prenatal and Postnatal Biopsychosocial Factors, Behavioral Development, Early Neurodevelopmental Disorders