Anna Benedict Email & Phone Number

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Running neuroimaging (fNIRS-EEG, EEG, fNIRS, MRI), behavioral, and biospecimen assessments of children with Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) and typically-developing controls; coordinating research visits and follow-ups with families, laboratory staff, and clinical staff; analyzing behavioral data. Lead coordinator of study investigating the behavioral and neural correlates of language development in children with FXS using multimodal fNIRS-EEG.

I am the founder of the Our Stories Project, which pairs university students with Clubhouse members to co-write short memoirs into a publicly-available book. By building constructive allyships and by detailing members’ struggles and successes living with mental health conditions, we draw from narrative therapy to fight the stigma surrounding mental illness.In 2020, I spearheaded a team of 85+ people comprised of Notre Dame students and members of the Clubhouse of St. Joseph County (a community mental health center) to write and compile short memoirs by the members, detailing their experiences living with and overcoming mental illness. This project was a response to the dual isolation brought about by mental illness and COVID-19. Our Stories is dedicated to forming allyships, breaking the stigma surrounding mental illness, and giving space to unheard voices. The first "Our Stories" book was published in Spring 2022. Currently in Cincinnati, I am leading a team of 40 people, comprised of University of Cincinnati students and Queen City Clubhouse members, to repeat and adapt the Our Stories Project to their unique needs. I am also developing a curriculum for Clubhouse International so the Our Stories Project can reach Clubhouses around the world.

University Of Notre Dame

Primary contributor to a cognitive neuroscience research project under Dr. Joshua Koen, an analysis of MEG data investigating whether the phenomenon of neural quenching differs between younger and older adults, and whether this phenomenon correlates with cognitive performance across the lifespan.

University Of Notre Dame

- Coauthored a book chapter on negative interpretation biases in health and mental illness. Published in T. Aue & H. Okon-Singer (Eds.), Cognitive biases in health and psychiatric disorders (2020). Elsevier.- Research Assistant for study investigating the effects of stress and cognitive reappraisal on intuitive decision-making.