Hi! My name is Christian and I am currently in my third year in the BBS program.
I'm from Gary, Indiana (the hometown of Michael Jackson). I earned my bachelor's degree from Indiana University – Bloomington. During my undergraduate studies, I worked in Dr. Chen Yu's lab as a research assistant under the guidance of Dr. Drew Abney and Dr. Sara Schroer and also served as the lab coordinator. In my final year, I teamed up with Dr. Daniel Messinger at the University of Miami in Florida. Inspired by these experiences, I decided to pursue a PhD in psychology under the guidance of one of my former advisors, Dr. Drew Abney.
My current research interest involves exploring the relationships between language, physiological responses, and cognitive-emotional development in children during dyadic interactions. So, I investigate how parental language supports autonomy and how that can influence children's self-regulation by analyzing physiological markers like respiratory sinus arrhythmia and neural activity via functional near-infrared spectroscopy.