Laura Martin

Laura E. Martin is a Professor of Population Health and Director of the Cognitive Neuroscience Unit at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Her research applies neuroimaging to understand health behaviors such as smoking, eating, and exercise, examining neural mechanisms of self-regulation and decision-making.

Her NIH-funded work investigates how health behaviors affect the brain and how neural interventions might modify behaviors. Recent studies explore brain responses to e-cigarette advertising and neural predictors of physical activity maintenance. As Cognitive Neuroscience Unit Director, she supports neuroimaging research across diverse domains including aging, depression, and addiction.

Dr. Martin teaches research methods and mentors trainees at all levels. Her work employs functional MRI to study reward processing, inhibitory control, and craving in addiction contexts, with applications for developing behavioral interventions.