Leslie Brick, Ph.D
Associate Professor
The University of New Mexico
lbrick@unm.edu
Ph.D. Psychology (Behavioral Science),University of Rhode Island
Primary Research Area
My research program investigates the interplay between substance use and stress-sensitive psychopathology, with particular focus on cannabis/cannabinoids and stress/trauma. I examine biological mechanisms—including genetic and epigenetic variation, hormonal and immune functioning, and the endocannabinoid system—in combination with environmental and developmental influences that confer risk for addiction and stress-related outcomes. Leveraging multimethod designs such as ecological momentary assessment, ambulatory physiology, and psychophysiological laboratory tasks (e.g., fear potentiated startle), my currently funded work (R01DA054116) aims to elucidate how cannabis use modulates stress responses (and vice versa) following acute trauma exposure among young adults in the Emergency Department. In addition to my substantive interests, I am deeply invested in quantitative methodology, with expertise in intensive longitudinal methods (e.g., ecological momentary assessment, dynamic structural equation modeling, idiographic network approaches) and structural equation modeling. The overarching goal of my research is to advance mechanistic understanding of the interplay between stress exposure and substance use, while contributing to the development and application of rigorous statistical methods that can capture dynamic, real-world processes.
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