Lab Members

Grant S. Shields, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of human neuroscience in the Department of Psychological Science at the University of Arkansas. Dr. Shields received his Ph.D. in psychology with an emphasis in cognitive neuroscience from the University of California, Davis. Dr. Shields’ research primarily focuses on understanding how executive functions, episodic memory, and decision-making differ as a function of context–including both external (e.g., facing a stressor) and internal (e.g., altered glucocorticoid levels, anxiety) contexts–as well as the neurobiological mechanisms underpinning those effects. This work can both improve our understandings of those cognitive processes themselves and facilitate the development of interventions that buffer against detrimental contextual effects on cognition. A secondary interest of Dr. Shields’ is in understanding the mechanisms linking stress and related factors to health and disease. Although he often to take an experimental approach (e.g., between-subjects acute stress manipulations, within-subjects cognitive task manipulations), he utilizes methods ranging from computational cognitive modeling to hormone assays and fMRI to answer questions of interest. Dr. Shields was named a Rising Star by the Association for Psychological Science in 2023.

Colton Hunter is a fourth-year Ph.D. student in the experimental psychology program. Originally from Vilonia Arkansas, he obtained a B.S. in Cognitive Neuroscience before coming to the University of Arkansas. Colton’s research focuses on distortions in memory and cognition, particularly under conditions of stress and heightened emotions.

Zach Gray is a third-year Ph.D. student in the experimental psychology program. He is from Austin, TX, earned his B.A. in Psychology at Hendrix College, and is a proud Colombian. Zach’s research interests are in based in understanding how people make decisions about politics and the value systems that influence those decisions. He is also interested in studying how cognitive styles, decision making profiles, and personality all interconnect to explain the self.

Elle is a second-year Ph.D. student in the experimental psychology program. Elle is from Farmington, AR, and has grown up in the greater Fayetteville area. She earned her B.A. in psychology at the University of Arkansas, and she obtained a minor in Criminal Justice. Elle spent her first year post-grad as the A SCAN Lab Manager where she further discovered her research areas of interest, (1) understanding how chronic minority stress influences acute stress responses, and (2) understanding how stress impacts various health outcomes.

Emily Patterson is a first-year Ph.D. student in the experimental psychology program. Her research interests include variations in memory formation and creative problem solving under stressful conditions.

Ben is an first-year Ph.D. student in the clinical psychology program who will be working with both Dr. Matt Judah in the CODA lab and Dr. Shields. Ben is from Fargo, ND, and earned his B.A. in Neuroscience and Psychology from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. Broadly, Ben is interested in understanding neural processes that help explain the associations between stress, executive function, and psychopathology.

Phoebe Zalenski earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Anthropology at the University of Arkansas. Her primary research interests are the connections between cognitive neuroscience and psychopathology as well as identifying abnormalities of mental processes with brain-imaging technologies. Specifically, she is interested in the neural mechanisms that contribute to psychopathy. After her gap year, Phoebe plans to attend grad school and pursue a Ph.D. in affective neuroscience.