Dr. Laurel Gabard-Durnam
Dr. Laurel Gabard-Durnam (she/her/hers) is the director of the PINE Lab and an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Northeastern University. She received a B.A. in Neurobiology from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in Psychology from Columbia University. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital prior to starting the PINE Lab.
As a developmental neuroscientist, Dr. Gabard-Durnam’s research explores how different environments and neuroplasticity interact to shape brain and behavior development. She is interested in how environment-neuroplasticity interactions support healthy development, as well as how adverse environments or atypical neuroplasticity processes impact development. She compares mechanisms between multiple socioemotional domains, including perception, language, and emotion regulation.
Dr. Gabard-Durnam’s research program has been supported by funding from The National Science Foundation, The National Institutes of Health, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome LEAP Foundation, and The Autism Science Foundation.
Besides science, she loves cheese, all things floral, running, and giving away surprises that she’s planned.