HOW WE DO IT
We're passionate about leveraging popular social media features and game mechanics in culturally tailored mHealth interventions in order to increase appeal and efficacy.
#socialmedia #gamification
We're also applying machine learning to better understand how alcohol use is portrayed and potentially influences college students alcohol-related cognitions (norms, expectancies) on popular social media sites.
#machinelearning
Formative research and intervention development in our lab commonly draw upon social norms, self-determination, and self-categorization theories
MEET THE TEAM
Joseph W. LaBrie, PhD
Founder & Co-Director
Joe (he/him) is a professor of psychology and a nationally recognized scholar in the domains of college student development and social norms based-health promotion. Much of his research has focused on increasing the efficacy and scalability of normative feedback student and parent-based alcohol interventions through the development of technologically advanced, interactive intervention formats for individuals and groups. In addition to this work, Dr. LaBrie has published a number of oft-cited papers investigating hot button issues on college campuses including pre-partying/pre-gaming, cannabis use, hook-up culture, social media-related influences on substance use, intervention gamification, and helicopter parenting. A community leader and former Jesuit priest, Joe holds a doctorate in clinical psychology as well as masters degrees in mathematics and theology. He is also the recipient of multiple federal research grants and numerous awards, including the American Psychological Associations Early Career Research Award and two LMU faculty awards, the Rains Award for Research Excellence and the Extramural Funding Award. In his spare time Joe enjoys international travel, entertaining, and walking around his favorite Los Angeles neighborhoods.
Sarah C. Boyle, PhD
Research Scientist & Co-Director
Sarah (she/her) is an Applied Social Psychologist who studies relationships between social media use, perceptions of peer norms, and health-risk behaviors including alcohol and other drug use among college students and sexual minority adults. With the goal of designing far-reaching and scalable substance use interventions that have real appeal to members of target communities, her work aims to integrate popular social media features and digital game mechanics into culturally tailored, web- and smartphone-based interventions. Currently, Sarah is examining the efficacy of a novel, gamified, social media inspired personalized normative feedback alcohol intervention for lesbian, bisexual, and queer women and digging into nuanced relationships between stigma-related stress, perceptions of drinking norms, and alcohol use in this population. A native of Cleveland, OH, and former basketball player, Sarah is a huge fan of grant-writing, small dogs, statistical tattoos, trading stock market derivatives, elegant hybrid trial designs, and the Cleveland Cavaliers (yes- even post-Lebron).
Brad Trager, Ph.D.
Research Scientist
Brad (he/him) received his Ph.D. in Biobehavioral Health from Penn State. His research interests include the study of alcohol use and related consequences, socio-cognitive influences of health, and risky decision making. An overarching goal of his research is to inform the development of cost-effective, mobile intervention programs aimed at reducing risky alcohol use in adolescent and emerging adult populations. Brad is currently working on two NIH funded intervention projects: (1) a feasibility study for a PNF intervention app for parents of incoming college students; and (2) an effectiveness trial for a gamified PNF for first-year students. Born in Montreal, QC, and raised in Boca Raton, FL, Brad is a research junky who enjoys gaming and flipping houses.
Reed Morgan
Senior Research Associate & CampusGandr Project Manager
Reed (he/him) is a graduate from Loyola Marymount University with a B.A. in Psychology. He is responsible for managing the lab’s NIH-funded R01 study that is testing a gamified social norms-based alcohol intervention for first-year students. Aside from this project, he enjoys helping out with writing papers and programming complicated Qualtrics surveys. Reed plans to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and study the impact of cognitive risk and resilience factors (e.g., emotion regulation, threat sensitivity, and distress tolerance) on the development of anxiety and depression and hopes to better understand comorbidity between these disorders and problematic drinking. Originally from Kailua, Hawaii, Reed loves to be in the outdoors, garden, brew kombucha, collect records, and go to concerts.
Alicia McLauchlin
Research Assistant
Alicia (she/her) is a graduate of University of California Los Angeles with a B.A. in Psychology. Her previous research focused on how digital media interacts with mental health and decision-making, in children and adults. She is interested in exploring how digital media and technology can be optimally utilized to benefit clinical populations. She plans to get a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and is interested in working as both a researcher and clinician. Originally from Tacoma Washington, Alicia loves hiking, cooking, knitting and gaming (particularly The Sims 4). She hates skiing and the wind.
Alexander Elrod
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Alexander (he/him) is a Junior Psychology major in his second year as a Heads UP! research assistant. Following graduation, he hopes to pursue a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Alexander is from Lodi, CA and enjoys playing water polo, visiting Disneyland, and watching anime.
Aidan Foucher
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Aidan Foucher (he/him) is a Sophomore pursuing a double major in Psychology and Philosophy. Aidan's prior work at Austin Clinical Trial Partners embedded in him an appreciation of behavioral and cognitive research. Born and raised in Austin, Texas he loves spending his free time outdoors hiking with friends, surfing, or reading a book.
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