Psychobiology Lab

Dr. Byrd-Craven received her Ph.D. in 2007 from the University of Missouri. She joined the OSU Psychology Department in the fall of 2007. Her primary research interest is the impact of social dynamics on the activity of the stress response and associated systems systems. Current research projects focus on: 1) patterns of father involvement that impact the mother-infant and family biorhythm; 2) the influence of female friendship interactions on stress and immune system reactivity; and 3) sex differences in response to stress and early adversity. Evolutionary theory is used as a framework for understanding the interaction between biology and social dynamics, with a particular focus on female sociality. See her full CV here.

Laureon is a third-year graduate student working with Dr. Krems and Dr. Byrd-Craven. Her interests are in female sociality, and in pairing both feminist and evolutionary perspectives to explore overlooked aspects of women's behavior.

Tori Short is a second-year graduate student working with Dr. Byrd-Craven and Dr. Krems. Tori is primarily interested in using evolutionary theory to study environmental influences on health-related schemas and behaviors pertaining to diet, exercise, stress, and inflammation. Tori’s research interests also include female friendship dynamics as well as sex differences in mate retention and satisfaction.

Krystal Duarte is a first-year graduate student working with Dr. Byrd-Craven and Dr. Krems. She is a McNair scholar and previously worked on projects that investigated romantic infatuation and flirting behavior. Her current research interests are in female status and female aggression from an evolutionary perspective.

Nina Rodriguez is a first-year graduate student working with Dr. Krems and Dr. Byrd-Craven. She received her M.A. at California State University Fullerton where she conducted research on personality traits from an adapationist perspective. Her current research interests range from female competition and sociality, status acquisition, personality variation, and the influence of motivation on behavior.

The Byrd-Craven Psychobiology lab is one of several labs in Psychology and Integrative Biology holding joint graduate lab meetings and furthering the OCEAN mission: 1) engage in interdisciplinary research; 2) train future research faculty and graduate students, including those from groups underrepresented in the sciences; and 3) undertaking educational outreach via the FOSSIL conference.