Ayanna Thomas

Ayanna Thomas is Professor of Psychology and Dean of the Graduate School at Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences. She directs the meta-Cognition and Applied Memory Laboratory, investigating episodic memory failures across the lifespan.

Education:

• Ph.D. - University of Washington (2001)
• B.A. in Psychology and African American Studies - Wesleyan University (1996)

Research Focus: Thomas examines cognitive processes underlying memory distortion, particularly how stress, aging, and metacognitive monitoring affect memory accuracy. Her work has applications in eyewitness testimony and cognitive aging interventions.

Awards & Recognition:

• Kentucky Professor of the Year (2011)
• Chancellor's Award for Teaching (1994, 1998)
• College Outstanding Teacher Award (2006)
• Excellence in Teaching Large Classes (2016)

Publication Trends: Recent work (2024-2025) integrates cognitive neuroscience with applied memory research, developing biosensors for stress measurement while examining neural correlates of misinformation susceptibility and timing effects on memory accuracy.

Grant Support: Multiple NSF grants including 'Using Stress and Warning to Improve Eyewitness Memory' (2017-2019) and 'Convergence: RAISE' framework for instrumented learning environments.