The Adolescent Development and Decision-making Lab, directed by Laurence Steinberg, studies various aspects of adolescent development and decision-making with a special focus on understanding why adolescents often engage in risky and reckless behavior. Research seeks to address topics such as why teenagers engage in risky behavior, using a variety of methods, including behavioral tests, brain imaging and questionnaires. 

The ASH Lab, directed by Dr. Ames Sutton Hickey (she/her), investigates the neurobiology underlying diseases associated with dysregulated feeding behavior, such as eating disorders. To achieve this goal, the lab leverages a variety of genetic and behavioral rodent models in combination with systems neuroscience techniques including opto-/chemogenetics and in vivo calcium imaging in freely behaving animals.

The Behavioral Neurophysiology Lab, directed by Lisa Briand studies the neurobiological underpinnings of vulnerability to addiction. It seeks to identify why some people who experiment with drugs of abuse become addicts, and the reasons why it is difficult to quit. To answer these questions, researchers utilize behavioral neuroscience, cellular and molecular biology, and optogenetic and electrophysiological techniques. 

The Child and Adolescent Anxiety Disorders Clinic, directed by Philip Kendall, focuses on researching therapy for children and adolescents with anxiety disorders. The work of the clinic involves evidence-based services for youth with anxiety and research that evaluates the effectiveness of different treatment approaches. Areas of research in the clinic include examining which elements of effective treatment are largely responsible for gains, the best way to treat anxiety in youth, the role of parents, and how best training community practitioners in evidence-based treatment for youth anxiety.

Under the direction of Thomas Olino, researchers in the Child and Adolescent Development of Emotion and Personality Laboratory study how emotional processing and personality confer risk to (and protection from) developing problem behaviors. It examines how reward-related behaviors and neural processes are associated with risk for multiple forms of psychopathology.

The Child Health and Behavior Lab, directed by Deborah Drabick, studies the ways in which disadvantaged youths can improve their opportunities for success, and if family, peers, and community are an integral part of this development. Researchers identify the factors associated with risk or resilience for emotional and behavioral problems among disadvantaged youths, and the lab runs a program that helps youths improve their emotion regulation, interpersonal behavior and problem-solving skills. 

The goals of the Cognitive Neuropsychology Lab led by Tania Giovannetti, are to develop and refine the understanding of the neurocognitive processes necessary for optimal everyday functioning in healthy people; understand the breakdown of everyday functioning following brain damage or disease; and develop and evaluate rehabilitation strategies. 

The  Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, led by Ingrid Olson, has two lines of research. The first line of work studies the development and the degeneration of episodic memory. Current studies are testing children and older adults with vascular dementia or mild cognitive impairment. The second line of work studies social cognition, with a focus on social concepts and theory of mind through the lens of white matter networks and cerebellar-cortical networks. The lab conducts studies using various  brain imaging techniques including fMRI and DTI. 

The  CAB lab  explores the cognitive processes that underlie adaptive behaviors – like making good decisions, choosing task-appropriate strategies, finding solutions to difficult problems, forming and maintaining healthy habits, and dealing well with distractions, emotional arousal, and social influences on behavior. Under the direction of  Jason Chein, the lab work focuses on the central role of self-regulatory control processes in supporting favorable outcomes in each of these contexts. 

The  Developmental Science Lab  group researches the processes involved in social understanding and interaction with others, and how these processes develop. Under the direction of  Peter Marshall, lab members use various behavioral and neuroscientific methods to examine the connections between self and other, beginning in infancy and extending into adulthood. Current research projects include examining how the body is represented in the developing brain, and how these representations may provide a building block for imitation and other cognitive capacities. 

In the Ellman Lab, Lauren Ellman and her students investigate the factors that contribute to risk for mental disorders, including the environmental and biological contributions to the development of schizophrenia and related disorders, such as other psychotic disorders and depression.

The Health Disparities and Prevention Science Lab led by Will Vincent, merges clinical and community psychology, health psychology, and public health to focus on vulnerable populations. Members investigate the impact of social and structural determinants of health, such as stigma and poverty, on mental and physical health outcomes, including health behaviors. They strive toward a strengths-based approach. Additionally, they are interested in multilevel conceptualizations of the individual in context with an appreciation for intersectionality theory. Finally, as part of a multilevel approach, broadly defined, they also investigate intra-individual, biological substrates of stigma and other social and structural determinants of health.

The Mechanisms of Affect Dysregulation Lab considers biological, psychological (cognitive-affective) and environmental mechanisms underlying difficulties in affect regulation (control of one’s emotional state). Under the direction of Michael McCloskey, researchers seek to understand how humans control their emotions through a combination of behavioral and neuroimaging studies. 

The Memory, Epigenetics and Addiction Laboratory led by Mathieu Wimmer, combines animal models of addiction with molecular biological techniques to study epigenetic mechanisms underlying addiction susceptibility. Researchers have developed a multigenerational model to study the influence of drug exposure on future generations. 

The  Mood and Cognition Lab  is led by principal investigator  Lauren Alloy. Researchers investigate the cognitive, developmental, emotional, neurobiological, and psychosocial processes in the onset and course of depression and bipolar disorder in adolescents and adults. Researchers investigate the causes of the first onset of depression and bipolar disorder in adolescents and young adults, and the factors that provide protection against these disorders. 

The  Neurochemistry and Cognition Lab  is led by  Vinay Parikh. Researchers investigate cellular and neurochemical circuit mechanisms that maintain cognitive processes, specifically those involved in attention and executive functions and how these mechanisms are affected by aging/pathological aging and exposure to drugs of abuse. Researchers utilize a combination of neuroscientific approaches, including rodent behavioral paradigms, in vivo electrochemical recordings, genetic manipulations, and protein biochemistry.  

The  Neuroeconomics Lab is directed by David V. Smith. Lab members examine how humans process rewards and make decisions. They study a broad range of decisions, but they are particularly interested in social decisions (e.g., trusting other people) and economic decisions (e.g., gambling). To study these processes, they integrate perspectives from economics, neuroscience, and psychology.  One of their current major projects uses fMRI to assess age-related differences in reward processing and decision making. They also use transcranial electrical stimulation to modulate the brain and cause temporary changes in decision making. 

The Peer Social Networks Lab is directed by Hongling Xie. Lab members investigate positive and negative peer relations and interactions in school social networks. Specifically, researchers study the various forms of aggression (e.g., physical and social), victimization and peer relationships (e.g., popularity, peer groups, and preferences) in childhood and adolescence.

The  Research in Spatial Cognition Lab  is led by  Thomas Shipley and Nora Newcombe. It seeks to understand cognition and spatial learning across age levels, from preschoolers to adult learners and how they can be fostered by effective technology and education. Shipley’s research focuses on learning in the geosciences including supporting students reasoning about 3D geological structures and the spatiotemporal processes that produced the structures, as well as supporting Earth and planetary geologists reasoning with robots and spatial database tools. Newcombe's research focuses on navigation and cognitive maps, including development, individual differences, and relevance for STEM learning.  

The Social and Affective Neuroscience Lab directed by Chelsea Helion, studies the neural and behavioral bases of social cognition in adult and developmental populations. The lab investigates emotional influences on social decision-making using a variety of methods, including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and implicit and explicit behavioral measures. 

Under the direction of  Johanna Jarcho, the  Social Developmental Neuroscience Lab  works to bridge the gap between clinical, cognitive, developmental and social affective neuroscience. It studies brain function and processes associated with social cognition, particularly during social interactions, that develop during adolescence and shift across the lifespan. It uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalogram (EEG) tests, eye movement, facial expression and behavioral responding during peer-based experiences. 

The Social and Emotional Adjustment Lab  investigates family and kin relationships, neighborhood conditions, family economic resources, and the social and emotional adjustment of ethnic-racial minority adolescents and young adults. We are particularly focused on understanding African American family dynamics, family routines, and the link between economic resources and social-emotional adjustment among urban, disadvantaged ethnic minority youth. Our current research examines how sleep quality, ethnic identity, social support, and economic stressors impact the psychological well-being and overall adjustment of Black college students. To address critical gaps in understanding social and emotional adjustment, we employ interdisciplinary, mixed-methods approaches including self-report surveys, daily diaries, and semi-structured interviews. Additionally, we enrich our research through community-based participatory projects, aiming to strengthen connections with the Philadelphia community both on and off campus.

At TEDp, we conduct science to improve the lives of the clients we serve. Under the direction of Eunice Chen, our work seeks to improve our understanding of eating and weight disorders. We have adapted and tested a range of psychosocial interventions for eating and weight disorders. We use clinical trial designs, behavioral and neuropsychological assessment, psychophysiological and neuroimaging methods, as well as clinical interview and self-report methods. More recent work uses meta-analytic methods and analysis of existing datasets.

The Temple Infant and Child Lab  is led by  Kathryn Hirsh-Pasek and  Nora Newcombe. Researchers examine cognitive development in infants and children, aged two months to 13 years. Newcombe’s  research focuses on memory development, and spatial development. Hirsh-Pasek's research looks at language development, reading, the role of play and creativity in learning, and school readiness.  

The goal of the Vision Learning and Development Lab, led by Vlad Ayzenberg, is to understand the mechanisms underlying early developing cognitive and perceptual abilities. To this end, the lab works with a range of age groups, from infants to adults, and takes a multi-modal approach by drawing on tools from psychology, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence.