Projects in Human Neuroscience and Psychology Supervised by Michael Lewis
Professor Lewis will supervise senior projects in Spring 2026. Depending on students’ interest and demonstrated preparation, they could be involved in (1) data collection for an ongoing study, and/or (2) analysis of an existing dataset.
The Lewis Lab uses psychophysiological and self-report measures to study the effects of electronically delivered interventions for increasing resilience in college students. Opportunities for involvement in data collection include hands-on experience with psychophysiological techniques (skin conductance, heart rate, heart rate variability) and experimental psychology. Students may analyze psychological and/or physiological data that is being collected as part of a randomized controlled trial.
Stoic Training for Achieving Resilience (STAR). Our study investigates the effects of an electronically-delivered intervention that applies Stoic philosophy to bolster psychological resilience. Recent evidence has established that STAR is a safe, free, and potentially scalable intervention that increases resilience and improves mental health and wellbeing. However, additional research is needed to further validate this intervention and to elucidate its potential mechanisms. Ongoing research in the Lewis Lab seeks to advance understanding of the psychological and physiological benefits of STAR in several ways. First, the use of a well-controlled laboratory stressor is a critical aspect of establishing the validity of STAR as an intervention to boost resilience. This is especially important to do because prior studies of STAR have relied upon retrospective self-report data and could not control for individual differences in the degree of exposure to stress. Second, our lab is the first to examine the resilience-boosting effects of STAR using objective biological measures of stress responding. Third, in addition to providing an objective measure of stress response, psychophysiological measures used in this study have the potential to elucidate biological underpinnings of STAR. Stress-evoked autonomic nervous system activity is a major determinant of allostatic load, which refers to the cumulative wear and tear of stress on one’s body and mind. The biological measures in this study index autonomic nervous system activity. Insights gleaned from these measures have the potential to inform the refinement of STAR and the further development of additional interventions to boost resilience in young people.
Professor Lewis will only supervise empirical projects (i.e., not literature reviews).