Our Research

At the INSPIRE lab, we investigate the psychological and neural mechanisms underlying cognitive functioning and emotional experiences across contexts. Our work integrates multiple methods and transdiagnostic dimensional approach to understand the dynamic processes of behavior and emotion that shape human behaviors. Below are our primary research areas, organized by themes.

Mobile phone user completing ecological momentary assessment (EMA)

Neural Mechanisms Underlying Cognitive Control and Emotional Appraisal

Cognitive control is the brain’s capacity to manage thoughts and actions to reach a goal, especially when confronted with distraction or conflict. Cognitive control is affected when the brain is also processing emotional stimuli, whether negative or positive. We use various tasks and stimuli to investigate how cognitive control interacts with emotional information, utilizing both shared and unique neural mechanisms.

Selected relevant manuscripts:

Suzuki, T., Menkes, M. W., McInnis, M. G., Kang, J., Niendam, T. A., Walton, M. A., Deldin, P. J., Tso, I. F., & Taylor, S. F. (2025). Response monitoring theta-band activities across emotional contexts in schizophrenia- and bipolar-spectrum disorders. Biological Psychiatry Global Open Science, 5(5), 100540. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsgos.2025.100540
Suzuki, T., Novak, K. D., Oumeziane, B. A., Foti, D., & Samuel, D. B. (2020). The hierarchical structure of error-related negativities elicited from affective and social stimuli and their relations to personality traits. Personality Neuroscience, 3. https://doi.org/10.1017/pen.2020.15
Suzuki, T., Ait Oumeziane, B., Novak, K., Samuel, D. B., & Foti, D. (2020). Error-monitoring across social and affective processing contexts. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 150, 37–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2020.01.009

Cognitive Difficulties Underlying Negative Affect in Psychosis Spectrum and Other Disorders

Individuals with psychosis spectrum disorders (including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder) experience intensified negative emotions (such as, sadness, anxiety, distress) in various situations. To explore the factors and mechanisms contributing to such intense reactions, we use electroencephalogram (EEG), questionnaires, ecological momentary assessment (EMA), and statistical modeling.

Selected relevant manuscripts:

Bornheimer, L. A., Lapidos, A., Simmonite, M., Suzuki, T., Tso, I. F., & Taylor, S. F. (2025). Stress sensitivity, negative affect, and functioning in an early psychosis clinic. Schizophrenia Research, 281, 125–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2025.05.001
Bornheimer, L. A., Martz, M. E., Suzuki, T., Tso, I. F., Burton, C. Z., Li Verdugo, J., Grove, T., Heitzeg, M. M., & Taylor, S. F. (2022). Affective dysregulation precedes emergence of psychosis-like experiences in a community sample of young adults. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 48(3), 664-672. https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbac015
Kline, C., Suzuki, T., Sommonite, M., & Taylor, S. F. (In press). Catatonia is Associated with Higher Rates of Negative Affect amongst Patients with Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorder. Schizophrenia Research.
Menkes, M., Andrews, C., Suzuki, T., Chun, J., O'Donnell, L. A., Grove, T. B., Deng, W., McInnis, M. G., Deldin, P. J., Tso, I. F. (2022). Event-related potential correlates of affective response inhibition in bipolar I disorder: Comparison with schizophrenia. Journal of Affective Disorders, 309, 131-140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.04.118

Latent Variable Modeling and Psychometric Analyses

Researchers and clinicians draw conclusions about subjective experiences and associated brain mechanisms based on the measures they use. Therefore, it is essential to ensure that such measurements assess psychological and psychopathology constructs as intended. For example, we need to ensure we are using valid and non-biased measure to avoid arriving at wrong a conclusion. In our research, we utilize latent variable modeling and psychometric techniques across a range of measures and topics (e.g., EEG, child problem behaviors, suicide) to evaluate their suitability as individual differences measures and to gain accurate and deeper insights into these complex experiences.

Selected relevant manuscripts:

Weigard, A. S., Suzuki, T., Skalaban, L. J., Conley, M., Cohen, A. O., Garavan, H., Heitzeg, M. M., Casey, B., Sripada, C., & Heathcote, A. (2024). Dissociable contributions of goal-relevant evidence and goal-irrelevant familiarity to individual and developmental differences in conflict recognition. Cognitive Science. 48(11), e70019. https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.70019
Neo, W. S., Suzuki, T., & Kelleher, B. L. (2021). Structural validity of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) for preschoolers with neurogenetic syndromes. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 109, 103834. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103834
Suzuki, T., Hill, K., Ait Oumeziane, B., Foti, D., & Samuel, D. B. (2019). Bringing the brain into personality assessment: Is there a place for event-related potentials? Psychological Assessment, 31, 488-501. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000611
Muehlenkamp, J. J., Suzuki, T., Brausch, A. M., & Peyerl, N. (2019). Behavioral functions underlying NSSI and eating disorder behaviors. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 75, 1219-1232. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22745

Personality and Personality Disorders (PDs)

Our understanding of personality disorders (PDs) have shifted to using transdiagnostic dimensional approaches, such as in the DSM-5 and ICD-10. Our research has contributed to facilitating this shift by investigating the links to the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of general personality. This line of research from our group and others have consistently found that four of the five FFM domains capture the essence of most PD, except for psychoticism and related experiences. Findings from this area informs our ongoing research on psychosis spectrum disorders.

Selected relevant manuscripts:

Suzuki, T., Samuel, D. B., Pahlen, S., & Krueger, R. F. (2015). DSM-5 alternative personality disorder model traits are maladaptive extreme variants within the five-factor model: An item-response theory analysis. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 124, 343-354. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000035
Suzuki, T., Griffin, S. A., & Samuel, D. B. (2017). Capturing the DSM-5 alternative personality disorder model traits in the five-factor model’s nomological net. Journal of Personality, 85, 220-231. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12235
Suzuki, T., South, S. C., Samuel, D. B., Wright, A. G. C., Yalch, M. M., Hopwood, C. J., & Thomas, K. M. (2019). Measurement invariance of the DSM–5 Section III pathological personality trait model across sex. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 10, 114–122. https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000291