Department of Psychology

Graduate Student:

Kristopher Ian Mathis

B.A., Florida State University, 2001
M.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 2004

As a third-year graduate student in clinical psychology, I divide my time among three main domains: coursework, clinical training and practice, and research. Having completed the department’s core courses in the clinical area, I am now working to complete a minor in behavioral neuroscience. My current clinical work consists of seeing several clients a week at UCLA’s Student Psychological Services and receiving intensive supervision and training in a multitude of areas. In our lab, I have focused my research interests on investigating the neurological correlates of personality, behavior, and emotional responsivity. Specifically, I have been applying a theory associating asymmetrical activation of the prefrontal cortex with the action of behavioral motivation systems to the study of schizophrenia. My goal is to help elucidate the relationship between certain brain states and specific emotional responses while further integrating a variety of measures and theoretical perspectives into a more comprehensive model of behavior. The hope is that through investigating these measures in the context of schizophrenia, a greater understanding of the relationship between personality and the disorder may be obtained. My current work involves collecting and analyzing EEG and visual startle reflex data and correlating these findings with concomitant self-report measures of emotional state and personality. While doing this, I am also assisting other members of the lab with collecting information such as salivary cortisol levels and electrodermal activity in response to both social and nonsocial stress. Finally, under the guidance of Dr. Yee-Bradbury, I am preparing an NRSA grant proposal to help fund further research in these areas.

mathis@ucla.edu

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