The candidate, Dr. Clintin Davis-Stober, is a mathematical psychologist who conducts research in the field of behavioral economics. The goal of this K25 application is to provide Dr. Davis-Stober the opportunity to expand his research program to alcohol and addiction studies, under the guidance of his mentors and consultants. The field of alcohol research has greatly benefitted from the application of behavioral economics perspectives (e.g., delay discounting, demand). The larger goal of this program is to accelerate the incorporation of cutting-edge mathematical decision models and experimental paradigms from behavioral economics into the field of alcohol studies. To this end, two leading alcohol researchers, Dr. Denis McCarthy and Dr. Kenneth Sher, will act as mentors for Dr. Davis-Stober. As detailed in the career development and training plan, Dr. Davis-Stober will gain expertise in alcohol studies research via extensive coursework, workshops, conferences, and intensive collaboration with mentors and consultants. A major goal of this four-year training program is for Dr. Davis-Stober to become an independent investigator in alcohol studies with a research program that is competitive for R-01 level funding. Concurrent with this training plan is a collaborative research program that lies at the interface of alcohol research, behavioral economics, and advanced mathematical modeling. In collaboration with his mentors, Dr. Davis-Stober will conduct a series of alcohol administration studies that incorporate the latest in experimental design from behavioral economics. These studies are designed to evaluate a host of important decision making properties, heretofore, under-studied in the field of alcohol. Data from these studies will be analyzed via state-of-the-art mathematical and statistical models drawn from mathematical psychology and behavioral economics. These models offer the opportunity for new theoretic advances in the understanding of decision making under alcohol intoxication. The broader impacts of this research program include new insights into how alcohol impacts an individual's ability to evaluate risky consequences when making a decision. This type of insight is crucial in designing societal programs to combat the occurrence of drunk driving and related risk behaviors.
This research proposal aims to study how decision makers make choices involving risks when intoxicated. For example, how do individuals weigh the consequences of alcohol, such as causing an accident while driving drunk, with the decision to drink? The results of this research program have the potential to positively impact the success of educational programs to encourage responsible drinking.
| Cavagnaro, Daniel R; Davis-Stober, Clintin P (2018) A model-based test for treatment effects with probabilistic classifications. Psychol Methods 23:672-689 |
| Regenwetter, Michel; Davis-Stober, Clintin P (2018) The role of independence and stationarity in probabilistic models of binary choice. J Behav Decis Mak 31:100-114 |
| Smeulders, Bart; Davis-Stober, Clintin; Regenwetter, Michel et al. (2018) Testing Probabilistic Models of Choice using Column Generation. Comput Oper Res 95:32-43 |
| Davis-Stober, Clintin P; Brown, Nicholas; Park, Sanghyuk et al. (2017) Recasting a biologically motivated computational model within a Fechnerian and random utility framework. J Math Psychol 77:156-164 |
