Margaret Wardle

Margaret Wardle, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois Chicago, serving as Director of Clinical Training and Clinical Program Chair within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Her research focuses on developing interventions for addiction, particularly examining drug-induced emotional dysfunction and anhedonia in cocaine use disorder.

Education:

• B.H.A. in Psychology and Art (2001) - Carnegie Mellon University
• Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (2009) - University of Illinois at Chicago
• Postdoctoral Fellowship (2009–2012) - University of Chicago in Human Behavioral Pharmacology

Research Interests:

• Neurobiological mechanisms of addiction
• Emotional processing in substance use disorders
• Clinical trials targeting anhedonia
• MDMA and oxytocin effects on social/emotional processing
• Exercise as a reward modulator

Grants & Lab:

• Current NIH NIDA Grant: Targeting Anhedonia in Cocaine Use Disorder
• Principal Investigator for studies on neural mechanisms and pharmacological interventions
• Led the Addiction Research and Treatment Lab exploring drug-emotion interactions

Professional Credentials:

• Licensed Clinical Psychologist (Illinois, 2015–present)
• Expert in human laboratory studies and clinical trial design