Tiffany Ito

Tiffany Ito is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is affiliated with the Center for Neuroscience and the Social Neuroscience PhD Program. Her work integrates social psychological and neuroscience methods to study stereotyping, prejudice, face perception, STEM education disparities, and adolescent substance use. She holds a PhD from the University of Southern California (1995).

Research Interests: Her research employs multi-level approaches to understand social cognition, including neural mechanisms underlying racial bias, gender disparities in STEM, and the psychophysiology of emotion. Key projects include examining how social identities influence neural responses to faces and developing interventions to enhance belonging in academic settings.

Key Contributions: Dr. Ito pioneered studies on the neural correlates of racial perception, the role of belonging in STEM retention, and the interplay between substance use and mental health. She directs the Social Neuroscience Lab and the CU Stereotyping and Prejudice Lab (CUSP), which explore topics like cannabis use patterns and anxiety comorbidities.

Education & Training: PhD in Psychology, University of Southern California (1995). Postdoctoral training in psychophysiology and social neuroscience.

Labs & Teams: Leads the Social Neuroscience Lab and CUSP Lab, collaborating with interdisciplinary teams on projects funded by NIH, NSF, and private foundations. Active in STEM education reform initiatives and policy advising on diversity and inclusion strategies.