Ayanna Thomas
Academic background
Alma materUniversity of Washington
ThesisChanging belief to memory : the role of sensory enhanced imagination and semantic activation in the creation and quality of false memories (2001)

Ayanna Kim Thomas is an American scientist, author, and cognitive researcher and the Dean of Research for the School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University since 2021.[1] She graduated from Wesleyan University and the University of Washington.[1] Her research focuses on the intersection of memory and aging, particularly as those fields relate to brain and cognitive science. She is a founding member of SPARK Society,[2] editor-in-chief of the journal Memory & Cognition, and a fellow of the Psychonomic Society and the American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program.[3]

Early life

Thomas grew up in New York and attended Catholic school. She left Catholic school to attended Bronx High School of Science.[4]

Education and career

Thomas received her B.A. in African American studies and psychology from Wesleyan University in 1996 and matriculated to the University of Washington to earn her PhD in 2001.[1][5] In 2004, she completed her post-doctoral work as a National Institute of Aging (NIA) Fellow at Washington University in St. Louis.[6]

Thomas' journey to professorship began as a research scientist at Washington University. In 2004, she transitioned to assistant professor at Colby College in the Department of Psychology. In 2007, Thomas became an assistant professor at Tufts University. In 2019, she was promoted to professor at the Tufts University Department of Psychology, and named Editor-in-Chief of the journal Memory & Cognition, starting her term in January 1, 2020.[7][8]

As of 2021, Thomas is a Professor and the Dean of Research for School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University.[6] Thomas is a founding member of the SPARK Society which is devoted to increasing representation in cognitive sciences for underrepresented minorities.[2] Thomas has acquired fellow memberships with the Psychonomic Society and American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program.[3]

Research

Thomas's research is in the field of psychology, memory and cognitive aging.[9] Her approach to research is translational with the use of different methodological techniques.[3] She is the principal investigator at the Cognitive Aging and Memory Lab at Tufts University.[10]

Thomas was editor of the 2020 release of The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging: A Life Course Perspective.[11] Her research has been covered by I Am a Scientist,[12] National Public Radio,[13] CBC News in Canada,[14][15] and Popular Science.[16]

Selected publications

Honors and awards

In 2018, Thomas received a Dalmas Taylor Award from the American Psychological Association.[17] She received a mid-career award from the Psychonomic Society in 2021.[18]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Ayanna Thomas | Department of Psychology". as.tufts.edu. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Our Founders". SPARK Society. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 "Ayanna Thomas". www.apa.org. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Ayanna Thomas, PhD | Psychologist". I Am A Scientist. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  5. ↑ Thomas, Ayanna K (2001). Changing belief to memory: the role of sensory enhanced imagination and semantic activation in the creation and quality of false memories (Thesis). OCLC 48647113.
  6. 1 2 "Announcing Ayanna Thomas as next Dean of Research for Arts and Sciences". Tufts School of Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Memory & Cognition". Springer. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Congratulations to our New Editors!". Psychonomic Society. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Ayanna Thomas, PhD | Psychologist". I Am A Scientist. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  10. ↑ "People". Cognitive Aging And. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  11. ↑ Thomas, A.; Gutchess, A., eds. (2020). The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging: A Life Course Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781108552684.
  12. ↑ "'I Am A Scientist' offers students STEM role models". Harvard Gazette. July 23, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Did That Really Happen? How Our Memories Betray Us". NPR.org. December 16, 2019. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  14. ↑ Mortillaro, Nichole (December 5, 2016). "The science of studying: How students can put their brains to best use". CBC. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  15. ↑ Smith, Amy M.; Floerke, Victoria A.; Thomas, Ayanna K. (November 25, 2016). "Retrieval practice protects memory against acute stress". Science. 354 (6315): 1046–1048. Bibcode:2016Sci...354.1046S. doi:10.1126/science.aah5067. PMID 27885031. S2CID 20202825.
  16. ↑ Watson, Sara Kiley (October 31, 2019). "Kids these days only seem dumb if you think you're a genius". Popular Science. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Minority Fellowship Program Achievement Awards". www.apa.org. Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Meet the Psychonomic Society 2021 Mid-Career Award Recipients". 2021. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
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