Natalie Ebner

Dr. Natalie Ebner is a Full Professor and the Trish Calvert Ring Endowed Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Florida. She leads the Social-Cognitive and Affective Development Lab and is affiliated with multiple institutes including the Center for Cognitive Aging and Memory and the McKnight Brain Institute. With a Ph.D. from the Free University of Berlin (2005), postdoctoral training at the Max Planck Institute and Yale University, her research focuses on emotional and cognitive aging, employing neuroimaging, pharmacological interventions, and behavioral studies. Key areas include oxytocin’s role in social cognition, phishing vulnerability in older adults, and decision-making across the lifespan. She has secured NIH and NSF grants and supervised early-career researchers through NIH K01 awards. Notable awards include Kavli Fellowship (2015) and APS Fellow (2023).

Education: Ph.D. in Psychology (Free University of Berlin, 2005), Postdoctoral Fellowships at Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Yale University.

Research interests span emotion regulation, interoception, and neurobiological mechanisms of aging. Her lab uses fMRI, neurofeedback, and oxytocin interventions to study topics like trust, pain management, and digital security risks. Collaborations include the Florida Institute for Cyber Security Research and the Pain Research and Intervention Center of Excellence.

Recent work highlights age-related differences in deception detection, phishing susceptibility, and oxytocin’s impact on brain networks. Grants include NIH-funded studies on oxytocin and chronic pain (NIH/NCCIH R01AT010645) and neurofeedback training for attention in older adults (NSF BCS-2019797).

Lab activities include the 'Train Your Brain' and Florida Consortium (FLORT) studies. Supervised students have received NIH K01 awards and diversity supplements. She teaches DEP 6059 (Aging and the Human Brain) and DEP 3053 (Developmental Psychology).

Scientific achievements include over 100 publications and leadership roles in interdisciplinary projects like the Oxytocin Brain Imaging Data Exchange (OBIDE) initiative.