Lab Director
Dr. Ann F. Haynos, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
Dr. Haynos' research marries neuroscience and clinical science, embracing a bench-to-bedside philosophy that allows mutual feedback between mechanistic and intervention questions. Haynos uses a multi-method approach (e.g., neuroimaging, neurocognitive tasks, ecological momentary assessment) and advanced analytical techniques (e.g., computational modeling) to identify decision-making mechanisms (e.g., emotion regulation, reward, cognitive control) that promote disorders of excess goal pursuit. In Haynos' intervention work, she develops and adapts neuroscience-informed treatments to target the processes that cause people to get stuck narrowly pursuing a goal that causes them harm.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Dr. Courtney E. Breiner, PhD
Courtney Breiner (she/her) is a postdoctoral research fellow in the REPEAT Lab. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University at Albany, SUNY in 2023. Her primary research interest is understanding and treating pediatric eating disorders (AN, ARFID), with a specific focus on creating and disseminating accessible interventions. Currently, she is testing the efficacy of a single-session intervention for the prevention of eating disorders, funded by the National Eating Disorders Association, as well as supporting the VIBRANT trial. She is passionate about mentorship, running, and drinking really good coffee.
Graduate Students
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Grace Lee, MA
Clinical Psychology Behavioral Medicine
Grace is a rising second-year PhD student in clinical psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University working under the mentorship of Dr. Annie Haynos. Before joining the REPEAT lab, she completed her BA and MA from Korea University, where she studied the neural mechanisms of emotional processing in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Overall, Grace's research interests lie in understanding NSSI and suicidality in anorexia nervosa, as well as exploring why these conditions frequently co-occur. Specifically, she is interested in using neuroimaging and real-time monitoring techniques to elucidate dysfunctions in reward mechanisms that may give rise to NSSI and suicidality in individuals with anorexia nervosa.
X: @gracelee0709
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Amanda Makara, BS
Clinical Psychology Graduate Student
Amanda Makara is a second-year clinical psychology student with Dr. Annie Haynos. Before arriving at the REPEAT Lab, Amanda graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2020. For her undergraduate thesis, Amanda studied the neural correlates of impulsivity in eating disorders. After graduating, she spent three years as a clinical research coordinator on projects targeting adolescent anorexia nervosa at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Currently, Amanda is interested in further understanding maintenance factors of restrictive eating behaviors across the weight spectrum with special interests in weight stigma and affective mechanisms. Outside the lab, Amanda enjoys trying new recipes, taking dance classes, and spending time with loved ones.
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Hannah Heintz, MS
Clinical Psychology Behavioral Medicine
Hannah is a third year doctoral student in VCU's Clinical Psychology program with a concentration in Behavioral Medicine. Hannah is interested in the intersection between cognition, physical health, and psychiatric disorders, with a focus on older adult populations. Her research seeks to integrate neuroeconomic theories and methods in examining and characterizing mental illness in late life.
X: @hannahlheintz
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Kira Venables, BA
Kira is the lead research coordinator for the VIBRANT (Virtual Interventions to Bolster Recovery following Anorexia Nervosa Treatment) Study. She received her BA in Psychology from Smith College in 2021. Kira is broadly interested in identifying cognitive and affective mechanisms that maintain eating disorders, as well as the development of novel treatments to target these mechanisms. Outside of the lab, Kira loves going to concerts, baking for her friends and family, and hanging out with her leopard gecko.
Research Coordinators
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Adanya Johnson
B.S., NEUROSCIENCE
Adanya is the lead research coordinator for the Rule-Based Decision-Making Study. She received her B.S. in Neuroscience at UNC Chapel Hill in 2022. Adanya is broadly interested in studying emotions, internal experiences (e.g., thoughts), and decision-making across levels of time and context (e.g., daily life, moment-to-moment actions, sociocultural + structural + historical systems) using computational & quantitative methods. In her free time, Adanya enjoys reading novels, traveling, photography, and FaceTiming her bichon, Gumbo.
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Kira Venables
B.A., PSYCHOLOGY
Kira is the lead research coordinator for the VIBRANT (Virtual Interventions to Bolster Recovery following Anorexia Nervosa Treatment) Study. She received her BA in Psychology from Smith College in 2021. Kira is broadly interested in identifying cognitive and affective mechanisms that maintain eating disorders, as well as the development of novel treatments to target these mechanisms. Outside of the lab, Kira loves going to concerts, baking for her friends and family, and hanging out with her leopard gecko.
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Danny Valerio Montero
M.S., PSYCHOLOGY
Danny is the lead research coordinator for the Teen Health Study. Danny moved from Costa Rica to study Psychology from William & Mary in Virginia, minoring in Art & Art History. His research interests are in community-centered interventions and prevention of psychopathology (depression, anxiety, eating disorders) for children and adolescents.
Former Members
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Dr. Courtney E. Breiner, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, 2024-2025
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Adanya Johnson
Research Coordinator, ??-2025
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Kira Venables
Research Coordinator, ??-2025
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Danny Valerio Montero
Research Coordinator, ??-2025
TREAT Lab
Dr. Kelsey Hagan, PhD
Dr. Kelsey Hagan is the head of the TREAT Lab - our sister lab at VCU!
Collaborators
Carol Peterson, PhD. University of Minnesota
Lisa Anderson, PhD. University of Minnesota
Christine Conelea, PhD. University of Minnesota
Shirley Wang, PhD. Yale University
Volunteers
Falzah Farooq, Postbaccalaureate Research Assistant
Krupa Patel, Postbaccalaureate Research Assistant
Rachael Gonzales, Undergraduate student at VCU