Meet The Lab

Lab Director

Richard J. Macatee, Ph.D.

Dr. Macatee is the director of the BRAINS Lab and an associate professor in the clinical psychology department at Florida State University. Dr. Macatee earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Florida State University in 2018 after he completed a pre-doctoral clinical internship at the Department of Psychiatry at University of Illinois – Chicago. Prior to returning to FSU, Dr. Macatee served as an assistant professor in the clinical psychology department at Auburn University from 2018-2025.

At the BRAINS Lab, Dr. Macatee focuses on the multi-method measurement and treatment of biobehavioral risk and maintenance factors for internalizing and substance use disorders, with a particular emphasis on co-morbid presentations. In his spare time, Dr. Macatee enjoys spending time at home with his wife and his twin sons.

Graduate Students

Kaveh Afshar, M.S.

Kaveh is currently completing his pre-doctoral internship at the Salem VA Medical Center in Salem, Virginia.

He graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a major in psychology and a minor in philosophy. He joined the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Auburn University in Fall 2019.

His research interest is studying psychophysiological and neural biomarkers to better understand internalizing disorders and other related psychopathologies. In his free time, he likes to play chess, watch movies, read books, and ride his bike around Auburn.

Julia Y. Gorday, M.S.

Julia is a graduate student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program. She is currently completing her pre-doctoral internship at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in Seattle, Washington.

Julia joined the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Auburn University in Fall 2020 after graduating from Florida State University with her bachelor’s degree in Psychology in August 2019.

Julia is interested in cognitive factors that impact the etiology and maintenance of anxiety and fear-related disorders (e.g., metacognition, information processing biases). Julia’s long-term goals include the development of interventions that target risk factors to mitigate anxiety and posttraumatic symptoms.

Thomas Preston, M.S.

TJ is a graduate student in the Clinical Psychology program at Auburn University. He is currently completing his pre-doctoral internship at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in Seattle, Washington.

TJ started in the Clinical Psychology program in 2020. Prior to Auburn, he graduated from Florida State University in 2018 with a double major in Psychology and Sociology.

TJ is interested in converging multi-method (EEG, behavioral, self-report) approaches to examine comorbid problematic substance use and posttraumatic stress disorder. In his free time, TJ loves buying too many plants, running, and telling his cat to get off the counter.

Brandon Schermitzler, M.S.

Brandon earned his B.S. in Psychology with minors in Neuroscience and Public Health from the University of Minnesota in 2018. He joined the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Auburn University in Fall 2021.

Broadly, his research interests focus on cognitive-affective mechanisms of substance use disorders (SUDs), examined through a combination of psychophysiological, neuroimaging, neuromodulatory, behavioral, and self-report methods. More specifically, he is interested in better understanding how factors, such as substance-related problem recognition and motivation to change, contribute to change, or lack thereof, in substance use behaviors. He is also interested in the development of accessible interventions to help people who experience SUDs. In his free time, Brandon enjoys hiking, drinking coffee, and buying (and unfortunately killing) too many plants.

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Mallory Cannon, M.S.

Mallory obtained her bachelor's degree in psychology and philosophy from Marist University in 2020. Following graduation, she worked as a lab coordinator for Dr. Robin Aupperle's NeuroCATT Lab at the Laureate Institue for Brain Research in Tulsa, OK. In Fall 2022, Mallory joined the Clinical Psychology PhD program at Auburn University. In Fall 2025, Mallory transferred to Florida State University with Dr. Macatee to continue her PhD under his mentorship.

Broadly, she is interested in studying how higher-level processes, such as emotional regulation, decision-making, and fear extinction, relate to trauma experiences and anxiety or substance use disorder (SUD) symptoms – and how delineating these processes may help us implement strategies to improve therapeutic techniques and interventions. In her free time, Mallory enjoys traveling, hiking, working out, reading books, and spending time with her pets.

Zoe Howell, MRes

Zoe joined the Clinical Psychology programme at FSU in 2025, and is a current graduate student in Dr. Macatee’s lab. She graduated with first class honours at The University of Manchester (England) in 2022 with a BSc in Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology. She then went on to pursue higher education at University College London and Yale University, studying a Masters of Research in Developmental Neuroscience and Psychology. After moving to the US and completing her MRes, she continued work at Yale as a Postgraduate Research Associate, studying opioid use during pregnancy.

Zoe’s academic research focusses on the translation of ‘brain to behaviour’ in substance use disorders, and the mechanistic intersections between substance use and internalising disorders. Zoe aims to understand the underpinnings and transdiagnostic factors of substance use, to better aid those impacted with substance dependency.