Dr. Samantha Abram joined BIEEGL in 2018 as a post-doctoral fellow under the VA Sierra Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Advanced Fellowship in Mental Illness Research and Treatment program. Dr. Abram received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Washington University in St. Louis. She then received her Clinical Psychology PhD from the University of Minnesota after completing clinical internship at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.
Dr. Abram’s research focuses on how decision-making and reward processing goes awry in schizophrenia and depression, and the extent to which aberrant decisions process track across species. She uses neurobiological and behavioral approaches to probe these questions, and draws from training in basic science, clinical psychopathology, and personality neuroscience. She hopes to improve our understanding of motivational deficits and advance corresponding treatments. In addition, Dr. Abram specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis, anxiety, and mood disorders.
In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, crafting, concerts, and spending time with friends.