معرفی
Karen Anderson is an Associate Professor and Associate Department Chair in the Department of Psychology at West Virginia University, with an adjunct appointment in the Department of Neuroscience. She has been a faculty member at WVU since 2003 and leads the Anderson Behavioral Pharmacology Lab.
Her research focuses on behavioral pharmacology, particularly the interaction between drugs and behavior in the context of addiction, impulsivity, and decision-making. Using non-human animal models, her lab investigates determinants of impulsive and risky choices, drug self-administration, drug discrimination, and the behavioral effects of substances such as CBD oil, nanomaterials, and pharmaceuticals. Key research themes include the relationship between impulsivity and substance abuse, temporal control of behavior, and behavioral factors in drug tolerance.
Dr. Anderson's scholarly work spans behavioral neuroscience and psychopharmacology, with a strong emphasis on experimental analysis of behavior. Her research employs controlled animal studies to isolate pharmacological effects from confounding variables present in human populations.
- Behavioral Pharmacology
- Addiction and Substance Abuse
- Impulsivity and Risk-Taking Behavior
- Drug Discrimination and Self-Administration
- Temporal and Delayed Reinforcement
- Behavioral Neuroscience
Dr. Anderson mentors graduate and undergraduate students in her lab and is actively recruiting for the doctoral program starting in Fall 2026. She teaches core courses such as Behavior Principles (Psychology 302), Advanced Experimental Analysis of Behavior: Behavioral Pharmacology (Psychology 736), and Clinical Psychopharmacology (Psychology 754). Although specific grant funding is not detailed, her sustained research program and lab operations suggest active grant-supported work. She previously served on faculty at the University of Mississippi Medical Center following her postdoctoral fellowship.
The Anderson Behavioral Pharmacology Lab provides a training environment for students interested in experimental and clinical aspects of behavioral pharmacology. The lab emphasizes methodological rigor in studying the behavioral effects of drugs and investigates emerging public health concerns related to novel substances.
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