Psychology > Graduate Programs > Behavioral Neuroscience
Behavioral Neuroscience Graduate Program
The Behavioral Neuroscience Concentration in Psychology emphasizes a research intensive, multi-disciplinary approach to the analysis of the biological determinants of behavior. The goal of the program is to prepare students for research and teaching in behavioral neuroscience by providing a broad background of training in modern neurobiology and traditional disciplines of behavioral sciences. The Behavioral Neuroscience laboratories are housed on the Manoa campus with access to research involving, mice, rats, hamsters, fish, and bees. Collaborative faculty researchers are located on the Kakaako campus, which houses the John A. Burns School of Medicine.
Graduate students engage in research from their first semester with a Behavioral Neuroscience faculty member and complete a basic core of required and elective courses in Psychology during their first two years. The research programs of individual faculty emphasize the analysis of behavior from psychological, neurobiological, pharmacological, endocrinological, developmental and ethological perspectives. In addition to the core Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience curriculum, students are encouraged to take courses in related areas such as Anatomy, Cell & Molecular Biology, Zoology, and Physiology.
Candidacy to the doctoral level is granted following the successful completion of course requirements, a masters thesis, and the comprehensive examinations. The Ph.D. is expected within a 5 to 6 year period following admission, depending on the nature of the research objective. Prospective students willing to work full-time toward the doctorate are encouraged to apply.
Behavioral Neuroscience Faculty
- Dr. Robert J. Blanchard, Professor
- Dr. Patricia A. Couvillon, Associate Professor
- Dr. Lorey K. Takahashi, Professor
- Dr. Adrian N. Dunn, Professor
Description of Research
Dr. Robert J. Blanchard is focusing on biobehavioral emotion systems, including aggression and defense, and the behavioral and physiological consequences of social stress. His work involves central and peripheral drug effects on defensive behavior in mice and rats that serve as preclinical models of anxiety, panic, and depression.
Dr. Patricia A. Couvillon is examining the comparative analysis of learning in both vertebrate and invertebrate species. Her research with honeybees examines: 1) the rules that govern the interaction of stimuli in compound conditioning, including summation, overshadowing, and blocking; 2) inhibition in classical conditioning; 3) the role of short-term memory; 4) the effects of variation in quality, quantity, and probability of reward on choice behavior in "risk-sensitivity" situations; and 5) the development of a quantitative theory of choice behavior. On-going work with goldfish and zebrafish includes an analysis of classical conditioning with the goal of developing a quantitative learning theory.
Dr. Adrian J. Dunn’s research involves the study of the biochemical and pharmacological mechanisms underlying behavior, especially those related to stress and depressive illness. The research inlvolves models in both rats and mice. A particular focus is on corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) and its relationship with norepinephrine in physiological and behavioral stress responses. He also studies the mechanisms by which the immune system communicates with the brain to enhance defence against pathogens, focusing on the role of cytokines, such as interleukin-1, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor. The mechanisms also appear to involve CRF and norepinephrine, as well as tryptophan and serotonin.
Dr. Lorey K. Takahashi is investigating the neurobiology of emotional learning and memory, especially in relation to fear, anxiety, and depression. The major focus of his research is to determine the specific roles played by brain corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) systems in relation to acquisition, consolidation, and retrieval of fear memory. In addition, Dr. Takahashi is studying how CRF systems, which are activated by stress, are modulated by other neuropeptides.
