Research Facilitation Committee

Committee Year 2025–2026 (Nominations are accepted annually)

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Committee Members:

• Chair: Joseph Carpenter, Ph.D., VA Boston/Boston University School of Medicine
• Ryan J. Jacoby, Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School
• Amy Brausch, Ph.D., Western Kentucky University
• Alexandra (Lexie) Convertino, Ph.D., California State University Dominguez Hills
• Alex Daros, Ph.D., University of Windsor
• Kiran Kaur, M.A., University of Utah
• Hannah Levy, Ph.D., Institute of Living/Hartford Hospital
• Ramya Ramadurai, M.A., American University
• Andrew Sherrill, Ph.D., Emory
• Kristin Szuhany, Ph.D., NYU Langone Health

Committee Purpose

The Research Facilitation Committee aims to develop and disseminate resources for ABCT members and the broader community conducting research in behavioral and cognitive principles and practices. The Committee oversees the annual graduate student research grant and honorable mention process, as well as the Spotlight on a Research award. The RFC committee also serves as a liaison between the ABCT and agencies that set the agenda and provide funding for activities relevant to our mission and behavioral values.

Benchmark 2025–2026

• Administer Graduate Student Research Grant (GSRG).
• Merit and need-based award that provides up to $1,000 to facilitate and support graduate student research that demonstrates a clear financial need in order for the project to succeed.
• Advertise and review the GSRG annually (applications due in March).
• Spotlight on a Researcher Award:
  • Solicit nominations and select annual Spotlight winners in the following categories: (1) early career researcher, (2) mid-career researcher, (3) health disparities researcher.
• Interview and publicize information about Spotlight winners.
• Finalize and publicize the Find-a-Researcher Directory.
• Conduct Research Facilitation Survey to assess research-related needs and priorities of ABCT membership and identify future goals and priorities based on survey responses.
• Update and expand Research Resources pages on ABCT’s website, prioritizing areas of greatest interest from survey above-mentioned survey responses.
• Liaison between ABCT and other organizations involved in promoting or funding research involving cognitive and behavioral practices (e.g., Coalition of the Advancement and Application of Psychological Science; CAAPS).