Young Investigator Award

Dr. Jennifer Silvers holds the Bernice Wenzel and Wendell Jeffrey Term Chair in Developmental Neuroscience and is an Associate Professor in the Psychology Department at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Dr. Silvers earned dual bachelors degrees in Psychology and Cognitive Science at the University of Virginia and completed her doctoral and postdoctoral work at Columbia University before joining the faculty at UCLA in 2016. At UCLA, Dr. Silvers directs the Social Affective Neuroscience and Development (SAND) Lab, which uses behavior and brain science to understand social, cognitive, and emotional development in children, adolescents and young adults. The SAND Lab is particularly focused on understanding how early experiences and social relationships (with both caregivers and peers) shape emotion regulation, learning, and decision making across development. Dr. Silvers has authored over 50 publications and has been funded by the American Psychological Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Science Foundation. Dr. Silvers’ work has been recognized with early career awards from the American Psychological Association, Association for Psychological Science, National Science Foundation, Society for Research in Child Development and International Society for Developmental Psychobiology.