معرفی
Dr. Tara Chaplin serves as Associate Professor of Psychology at George Mason University, where she directs research on adolescent emotional development, psychopathology, and substance use with emphasis on sex differences and family context. A licensed clinical psychologist, she joined GMU in 2013 after serving as Assistant Professor in Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine.
Her educational background includes a Ph.D. in Child-Clinical Psychology from Penn State University (2003) and a B.A. in Psychology with Biology minor from the University of Delaware (1997).
- 2003: Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, Penn State University
- 1997: B.A., Psychology (Biology minor), University of Delaware
Chaplin's research pioneers bio-psycho-social models examining how emotional arousal and emotion regulation interact with parenting dynamics to influence adolescent risk behaviors. Her work uniquely integrates fMRI neuroimaging, cardiovascular measures (heart rate variability), neuroendocrine assessments (HPA axis), and ecological momentary assessment to capture real-time developmental processes. Current focus areas include sex-differentiated neural pathways to substance use and mindfulness-based parenting interventions for stress reduction.
Analysis of her publication trajectory reveals increasing methodological sophistication in linking neural mechanisms with behavioral outcomes, particularly through longitudinal designs tracking adolescents from early to middle adolescence. Her work consistently demonstrates how parenting interventions can modify neurobiological stress responses to prevent psychopathology.
Her scientific recognition includes:
- NIH/NIDA Independent Scientist Award (K02 DA058840)
- NIH/NIDA Career Development Award (K01DA024759)
Chaplin has mentored eight doctoral students to completion with diverse research foci spanning adolescent neuroimaging, immigrant parenting, and intervention development. She currently recruits PhD students for Fall 2025. Her NIH-funded research program includes:
- Active Grants:
- R01 DA033431: $2.5M study on parent-adolescent interactions and brain mechanisms in substance use
- R01 DA052427: $3.1M trial of mindfulness intervention for stressed parents
- K02 DA058840: $500K Independent Scientist Award
She leads a multidisciplinary research team conducting four major studies including NIH-funded longitudinal projects examining parent-adolescent neurobiological synchrony, with specialized focus on Latina mothers in pilot work. Her lab combines advanced neuroimaging with ecological assessment to capture dynamic parenting-emotion-behavior pathways.
