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ABOUT RYAN
Dr. Ryan L. Brown is an Assistant Professor in Human Development and Family Sciences at Texas Tech University, an affiliate in the Department of Women's and Gender Studies and the Center of Excellence for Translational Neuroscience and Therapeutics, and Director of the Stress, Aging, and Relationships (STAR) lab. ​Dr. Brown is broadly interested in using theoretical perspectives drawn from developmental, health, and social psychology to understand the role of stress-response processes in healthy aging, particularly through times of social loss (e.g., widowhood). Her program of research focuses on transdiagnostic psychological factors that relate to dysregulation of the stress-response system, the biological mechanisms underlying those relationships, and how psychological, social, and biological factors operate together to affect health across the lifespan. Take a look at her published work to get a better idea of potential collaboration opportunities.
Prior Experience
Previously, Dr. Brown was an inaugural Bakar Aging Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellow and an NIMH-funded T32 Postdoctoral Scholar working with Dr. Aric Prather & Dr. Elissa Epel in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco. She earned her Ph.D. in Psychological Sciences from Rice University working with Dr. Chris Fagundes on questions of attachment, grief, and stress reactivity with cross-disciplinary training in psychoneuroimmunology. For her graduate work, she received the 2023 APS Albert Bandura Graduate Research Award. At Rice, she was honored to receive a university-wide Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award after being nominated by her students.​
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Dissemination​ and Science Communication
Dr. Brown is passionate about communicating her research to the public (e.g., through Skype A Scientist or her YouTube channel). As a graduate student in 2020, she created Ryan's Science, a cross-platform science communication outlet that fosters curiosity and excitement around scientific research. Along with Dr. Nanci Weinberger, she co-created Sci-Tea to demonstrate how the value of research can extend far beyond publication. She recently began as Digital Editor for Biopsychosocial Science and Medicine. As Director of Scientific Communications for the Stress Measurement Network, she began hosting the Stress Puzzle podcast in 2024.
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EDUCATION
August 2017Â - May 2022
PH.D. IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES
In this program at Rice University, Dr. Brown was a dual-degree Ph.D. candidate in Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine + Industrial-Organizational Psychology. She worked with Dr. Christopher Fagundes in the Biobehavioral Mechanisms Explaining Disparities Lab where they used a psychoneuroimmunological approach to explore mechanisms linking stress and health in older adulthood.
August 2013- May 2017
B.A. INÂ APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
At Bryant University, Dr. Brown studied Applied Psychology with minors in Business Administration, Economics, and Statistics. She was captain of the women's tennis team beginning in her sophomore year through my senior year. She worked as an undergraduate research assistant in both the Applied Psychology and Biology departments. She also analyzed and presented monetary policy recommendations as a part of a competition at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.