UROP Project

Neuromodulation of Motivation Oscillations (NEMO) Study

Depression, Addiction, Cannabis Use, EEG, Neuroscience

Research Mentor: Zoe Howell , She/Her
Department, College, Affiliation: Psychology Department , Arts and Sciences
Contact Email: howell@psy.fsu.edu
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from mentor):
Research Assistant Supervisor Email:
Faculty Collaborators:
Faculty Collaborators Email:

Looking for Research Assistants: Yes
Number of Research Assistants: 2
Relevant Majors: Open to all majors! Perhaps pre-medical, psychology, and neuroscience students would be more interested in this project.
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
Research Assistant Transportation Required:
Remote or In-person: In-person
Approximate Weekly Hours: 10, Flexible schedule (Combination of business and outside of business. TBD between student and research mentor.)
Roundtable Times and Zoom Link:

• Day: Wednesday, September 2
  Start Time: 3:30
  End Time: 4:30
  Zoom Link: https://fsu.zoom.us/my/zhowell
• Day: Thursday, September 3
  Start Time: 2:30
  End Time: 4:30
  Zoom Link: https://fsu.zoom.us/my/zhowell
• Day: Friday, September 4
  Start Time: 12:00
  End Time: 4:00
  Zoom Link: https://fsu.zoom.us/my/zhowell

Project Description

Cannabis use disorder (CUD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) are among the most prevalent psychiatric conditions in the United States, affecting an estimated 20.6 million and 21 million adults respectively. Both disorders are characterized by reduced pleasure, diminished motivation, and dampened neural reward sensitivity. This shared dysregulated reward-processing may reflect a common prefrontal oscillatory dysfunction, centralized in mesolimbic dopaminergic reward pathways. Despite their high prevalence, the neural mechanisms underlying blunted reward remain poorly understood. The current project will use electroencephalography and non-invasive brain stimulation via transcranial alternative current (tACS) to better understand this reward pathway, and aims to investigate whether tACS will boost neural markers of reward.

Research Tasks: Research assistants will have the opportunity to work on all aspects of a research project from start to finish, as driven by their own interests. Examples of tasks will include data collection (EEG, tACS), conducting interviews, recruitment and administration, data pre-processing, and initial literature reviews.

Skills that research assistant(s) may need: High level of attention to detail required.
Basic understanding of neuroscience recommended, but not required. We will do a literature review at the beginning of the semester to understand the key concepts together!