Jaclyn Dell

University of Birmingham Postgraduate Award, University of Birmingham - Psychology

I am a recent graduate of the master’s program in Psychology at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. Back home, I spend most of my free time with my husband and our three dogs, serving in our church, and mentoring individuals with drug and alcohol addiction. My academic pursuit is to understand the nature of addiction, the powerful motivation to consume harmful and undesired, but rewarding, substances. Working at the University of Birmingham in the UK, I will use neuroimaging to investigate the brain mechanisms underlying these processes. My hope is that, with a better understanding of drug addiction at the neural level, there will be potential for more informed clinical theories and improved treatment strategies. As a Fulbrighter, I am honoured to join a company of such respected scholars. I plan to immerse myself in the Birmingham and UK culture as much as possible! I plan to gain an understanding of the way that recovery outreach works in the UK through volunteer activities, walk the famous canals (there are more in Birmingham than Venice!) and share my research with a network of diverse and international collaborators.