Bio

Miglena Ivanova is a third-year doctoral student in developmental psychology and a Prevention and Methodology Training (PAMT) pre-doctoral fellow, working alongside her primary mentors Dr. Rina Elden and Dr. Ashley Linden Carmichael, and with her secondary advisors Dr. Jenae Neiderhiser and Dr. Qiushi Chen. Her research interests center on understanding of differential pathways via which early and protective factors predict childhood codeveloping internalizing and externalizing behavior problem trajectories and subsequent unique patterns of adolescent substance use and psychological disorders. Miglena is interested in integrating advanced quantitative methodologies, namely latent class growth modeling and machine learning, to explore her research interests. Her long-term goal is to translate her research into developing individualized evidence-based prevention techniques and early interventions.

Originally from Bulgaria, she received her B.S. degrees in Psychology and in Psychiatric Rehabilitation from Montana State University Billings in 2019, graduating as an Honors Scholar and the 2019 University Golden Merit Award Recipient.

Bio

Shou-Chun (Nathan) Chiang is a doctoral student in Human Development and Family Studies and a Prevention and Methodology Training (PAMT) pre-doctoral fellow working with Dr. Sunhye Bai and Dr. Ashley Linden-Carmichael. His research focuses on family relationships and adolescent emotional development, and how emotions are related to psychopathology and substance use. Specifically, he is interested in understanding how day-to-day parent-youth interactions impact adolescent emotions and alcohol use, and how these short-term processes are related to developmental outcomes, such as substance use disorder and internalizing symptoms.

Bio

Holly Pham is a doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program and a Prevention and Methodology Training (PAMT) pre-doctoral fellow working with Dr. Stephanie Lanza and Dr. Hannah Schreier. Holly’s research is focused on uncovering the psychosocial and biological mechanisms through which adolescence can be a sensitive period for risk and resilience. She is interested in how adversity gets under the skin, individual differences in the development of adolescent-emergent health problems such as depression and substance use, and puberty’s role in increased plasticity during adolescence. Holly received a M.S. in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a B.S. in Psychobiology from the University of California, Los Angeles. Her academic advisor is Martha Wadsworth.

Bio

Walter is a graduate student in the Clinical Psychology program and a Prevention and Methodology Training (PAMT) pre-doctoral fellow mentored by Dr. Stephen Wilson and Dr. Ashley Linden-Carmichael. Walter’s research looks at how the brain and body are involved in the onset and maintenance of substance use problems and focuses on the role of personal characteristics (e.g., genetics, psychopathology, endocrinology). He is also interested in improving assessment methods in the diagnosis and treatment of substance use problems. Walter received bachelor’s degrees in biology and kinesiology from Westmont College and a M.S. in psychology from Penn State.