The Training Program in Emotion Research is directed by Dr. Richard J. Davidson and funded by a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Institutional National Research Service Award training grant. The program provides specialized, non-degree training for University of Wisconsin-Madison students at the pre and post-doctoral levels. A total of three (3) pre-doctoral students are supported by the grant in any given year. In addition, one (1) post-doctoral trainee will be supported each year.
The major activities of the training program include participation in the annual Wisconsin Symposium on Emotion, attendance at monthly meetings of faculty and students on topics in emotion research, ethics training, as well as other relevant activities on campus. Please contact the Training Program in Emotion Research Administrator, Jane Lambert, at emotiont32grant@bi.wisc.edu for more information.
We look for diverse candidates with strong potential for future academic success, whose research interests are well aligned with those of the program and the desired faculty mentor.
Program Research Areas & Faculty
Our training program is focused on four areas of current emotion research:
- Personality, temperament, and individual and cultural differences: Lifespan developmental, genetic, cognitive and biological approaches, and human-computer interaction;
- Affective neuroscience;
- Emotion, health, and well-being; and
- Emotion and psychopathology.
Trainees may work with any of the following faculty: Brooke A. Ammerman, Reid S. Alisch, John J. Curtin, Richard J. Davidson, Simon B. Goldberg, Diane C. Gooding, Dan Grupe, Ryan J. Herringa, Matthew J. Hirshberg, Ned H. Kalin, Michael R. Koenigs, James J. Li, Ali Mohebi, João Guassi Moreira, Bilge Mutlu, Paula M. Niedenthal, Seth D. Pollak, Melissa A. Rosenkranz, Carol D. Ryff, Sarah J. Short, Alvin Thomas, Katie L. Walsh and Earlise C. Ward.
Post-doctoral Applicants
The NIMH-funded T32 Training Program in Emotion Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will have two post-doctoral training positions starting in Fall 2026 with up to three years of support. Applications are due on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.
Following is a list of faculty who desire post-doctoral candidates:
Brooke Ammerman invites applications for a postdoctoral research associate focused on advancing suicide prevention through innovative, technology-enhanced methods and cutting-edge research on emotions. Working collaboratively across the Department of Psychology and the Center for Healthy Minds with Dr. Ammerman (primary supervisor) and Dr. Ross Jacobucci, the fellow will contribute to projects that use ecological momentary assessment, passive smartphone sensing, and adaptive intervention technologies to examine moment-to-moment emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal processes that shape suicide risk and resilience. Our work emphasizes identifying cognitive–affective patterns of vulnerability, including fluctuations in emotional intensity, differentiation, reactivity, and recovery, as well as developing and testing strengths-based assessments and digital interventions designed to enhance protective factors such as emotional awareness, social connection, and overall well-being. This position offers exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary training at the intersection of clinical psychology and computational modeling, including mentorship in affective dynamics, intensive longitudinal methods, and machine learning approaches. We welcome applicants with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology or related fields who have experience working with individuals at elevated suicide risk and who are eager to build a research program focused on how emotional processes shape both vulnerability and flourishing.
Dr. Simon Goldberg is recruiting a postdoctoral fellow to join his group. Dr. Goldberg is the Kellner Family Distinguished Chair in Education and Well-being, an associate professor in the Department of Counseling Psychology, and core faculty at the Center for Healthy Minds. He has two primary programs of research. The first focuses on developing and testing digital meditation interventions to promote mental and physical health. The second focuses on research synthesis of meditation-based interventions. He is the PI / MPI of NIH-funded grants focused on these topics. He is seeking a postdoctoral fellow primarily interested in analyzing data and preparing manuscripts based on the results of recently completed studies.
Dan Grupe is recruiting a postdoc to join the Cultivating Justice CoLaboratory, a community-engaged research group based at the Center for Healthy Minds. Through research partnerships with community organizations, system partners, and individuals with lived experience, our research is focused on understanding and promoting the causes and conditions that bring about healing and flourishing for people who have experienced incarceration. Ongoing projects include an NIH-funded study to evaluate the feasibility and impact of an in-person, mindfulness-based intervention during reentry; developing and implementing strategies for peer-delivered meditation practices during and after incarceration; and research on the ripple effects of a prison-based restorative justice program. We welcome applications from candidates with strong interests and previous experience in qualitative and mixed methods, implementation science, community-engaged research, and research with system-impacted individuals and others who have experienced significant trauma and marginalization.
Dr. Matthew Hirshberg leads the Center for Healthy Minds’ educational and adolescent development programs of research. Dr. Hirshberg’s work has three interrelated foci: 1) Understanding the constituents of wellbeing (both reductions in negative emotions and increases in positive qualities) during adolescence and adulthood and their relationship to positive developmental; 2) testing whether contemplative-based interventions (digital and in-person) strengthen these constituents and associated distal outcomes; and 3) identifying psychological, behavioral, physiological and biological mechanisms of positive change. Scholars with interests in adolescent development or education who also have expertise in personal sensing data, wearable technologies, machine learning methods, or causal mediation methods are particularly encouraged to reach out to Dr. Hirshberg directly to learn more.
Dr. Michael Koenigs is seeking a postdoctoral scholar to join his Incarceration and Mental Health Research Group. The goal of our research is to improve mental healthcare and promote well-being for individuals who are currently or formerly incarcerated. We have a longstanding collaboration with the State of Wisconsin Department of Corrections that allows us to develop services and supports for people currently incarcerated in state prisons. We also work with formerly incarcerated people in our community. Our research approach includes community engagement, clinical trials, and qualitative methods. Our current projects include the development and evaluation of several different prison-based initiatives, including group Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for PTSD, a peer-guided self-help workbook based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a peer support group for prison intake, a peer support group for restricted housing, and trauma training for correctional officers.
Dr. Joao Guassi Moreira will be reviewing applications for a postdoctoral scholar through the TPER. His lab is currently running fMRI studies examining (i) the role of affect in shaping associations between mental representations of close others and daily social experiences, (ii) how daily affective experiences sculpt neural phenotypes of emotion regulation, and (iii) neural signatures of emotion regulation and adolescent risk-taking. More information about his lab’s research can be accessed at http://cdnlab.psych.wisc.edu/CDNlab/. The ideal applicant will have a strong publication record, strong writing skills, experience analyzing fMRI (or similar types of data), at least moderate fluency with programming, a substantive interest in affective neuroscience or emotion regulation, and a PhD in psychology or a related field (e.g., neuroscience) by the position’s start date. Potential applicants are encouraged to contact Dr. Guassi Moreira prior to applying to gauge fit.
Dr. Seth Pollak will consider applications for postdoctoral scholars interested in joining the Child Emotion Research Lab. Postdocs are not expected to work on existing projects but will be supported in developing and launching (or continuing) their own programs of research. Areas of research may include the development and emergence of emotions in humans; factors that affect children’s socio-emotional learning, health, and well-being; effects of early life stress including environmental unpredictability, child poverty, and adversity; children’s exploration and mechanisms of social learning; and typical development of children’s understanding of emotion. Our experiments employ cognitive, physiological, neuroimaging, behavioral, and computational methods. Applicants must have prior research experience with infants, children, or adolescents.
Dr. Melissa Rosenkranz: The work in my lab seeks to shed light on how psychological experiences, like stress or negative emotion, interact with the immune system, using the tools of brain imaging, immunology, and molecular biology, to give rise to relationships where chronic inflammation is associated with two-fold higher rates of depression and psychological stressors mobilize inflammatory responses. Much of this work has been done in the context of asthma, as a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways. The long-term consequences of these relationships have been the focus of much of my recent work, where my lab has been trying to understand how chronic inflammation in the body contributes to neurodegeneration, cognitive decline, and Alzheimer’s disease. The ideal candidate will have some experience with brain imaging and be comfortable writing code. Some background in immunology would be helpful but is not required.
Dr. Sarah Short is seeking a postdoctoral scholar to work with her on a Mindfulness Based Childbirth and Parenting intervention. Her lab specializes in the use of MRI, biological measures, and cognitive-behavioral methods to study processes related to mindfulness, prenatal factors, early child development, and parenthood. Qualified applicants should have a degree in Clinical Psychology or Neuroscience and/or neuroimaging experience and be interested in advancing evidence-based approaches to maternal and infant well-being.
Dr. Kate Walsh seeks a postdoctoral fellow who is interested in working on projects related to emotional regulation, psychopathology, and sexual and relationship violence. Dr. Walsh’s Preventing Interpersonal Violence and Overcoming Trauma (PIVOT) lab has daily diary, treatment outcome, and representative survey data from a variety of samples including college students and community participants including those seeking acute medical care. A recent and ongoing project that may be of interest is a NIDA-funded treatment outcome study testing the efficacy of a video and text message program in preventing the onset or escalation of posttraumatic stress and substance misuse outcomes among recent sexual assault survivors. The ideal candidate would be motivated to build their research program with these or other data through data analysis and preparation of manuscripts for publication.
Applications
Please send the following items by Wednesday, January 28, 2026, to the Training Program in Emotion Research Administrator, Ms. Jane Lambert, at: EmotionT32Grant@bi.wisc.edu
- Cover letter: Identify the program faculty member(s) with whom you wish to train.
- CV
- Research Statement
- Three letters of reference (These can be submitted separately by the letter writers themselves and will be accepted until Sunday, February 8, 2026.)
Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible to apply. We are an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer.
Pre-doctoral Information
UW-Madison faculty can nominate pre-doctoral students for the program, but pre-doctoral students cannot apply directly to the program themselves.
Pre-doctoral nominees must apply to or be enrolled in a degree-granting graduate program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. If your application is seriously considered by a program faculty member, he or she may decide to nominate you for consideration by the selection committee by contacting the Training Program in Emotion Research Administrator, Jane Lambert, at emotiont32grant@bi.wisc.edu. If you are interested in participating in the program, be sure to discuss this with your prospective advisor.
According to federal funding regulations, in order to be eligible for support, all applicants must be U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals, or lawfully admitted permanent residents. Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible for financial support.
Acknowledgments
This program is supported by NIMH grant 5T32MH018931, with additional funding from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Graduate School.