PEARL Positive Emotion and Anxiety Research Laboratory

06/16/2025

Do you struggle with social anxiety?

If you get anxious in social situations or being the center of attention, you may qualify for our research study! Our research team at UC San Diego is exploring the effect of an investigational oral medication when used on demand to treat symptoms of social anxiety.

If you are interested in participating in our study, please fill out this pre-screen survey to determine your initial eligibility.

09/18/2024

Are you feeling anxious, depressed, or disconnected? Unmotivated or socially isolated?

Our research team at UC San Diego is conducting a study to learn more about the potential of an FDA-approved dopamine agonist to improve social connectedness in adults who experience anxiety or depression.

This medication increases dopamine signaling in parts of the brain believed to underlie motivation and behavior, and the results of this study may help inform a new treatment approach for anxiety and depression.

If you are interested in learning more, please complete the survey via this link (https://my.ctri.ucsd.edu/surveys/?s=9T9N98FRN8A3MXWD) or the QR code below to help us determine if you may be eligible for further screening to participate in this compensated study!

For questions, please don't hesitate to contact our team at [email protected] or (858) 534-6400

08/21/2024

Exciting news! Our PI, Dr. Charles Taylor, was recently featured in a NYT article about reward sensitivity. Don't miss out on this insightful read! Check it out here:

Psychologists call it reward sensitivity. And simple steps can help you boost your drive to seek out positive emotions and enjoy life.

10/17/2023

Hello everyone! Our PI, Dr. Charles Taylor, recently published an article in the Biological Psychiatry Journal. This trial tested the hypothesis that targeting positive valence processes through cognitive and behavioral strategies enhances responsivity to social rewards, a core mechanism underlying social connectedness. Check it out!

Social disconnection is common and impairing in anxiety and depressive disorders and does not respond sufficiently to available treatments. The positive valence system supports social bond formation and maintenance yet is often hyporesponsive in those with anxiety or depression. We conducted an expe...

06/08/2017

Indiana University Professors, Joel Wong, Ph.D. and Joshua Brown, Ph.D., discuss how gratitude has lasting effects on our brain and well-being. Take a look at the link below.

New research is starting to explore how gratitude works to improve our mental health.

05/30/2017

One of PEARL's collaborators, Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., and Christina N. Armenta, M.A. share about how gratitude improves our lives and our communities. Check out the link below.

Some critics charge that gratitude is selfish and breeds complacency. But research by Christina Armenta and Sonja Lyubomirsky suggests otherwise.

05/01/2017

Sheryl Sandberg, author of "Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy," shares her story of tragedy and how teaching her children resilience is beneficial to their overall mental health. Take a look at the link below:

After my husband’s death, I set out to learn everything I could about how kids persevere through adversity.

09/20/2016

In a recent study by Daniel Pine, M.D. and Joseph LeDoux, Ph.D., fear and anxiety are mediated by more than just a "single fear circuit." Learn more in the link below!

Untangling the brain circuitry of fearful feelings from that underlying defensive behaviors is key to improving treatments for anxiety disorders, argue two leading experts.

05/13/2015

May is Mental Health Month. Follow the link below to watch some videos covering various topics about anxiety and depression education.
http://www.adaa.org/resources-professionals/journal-media/videos

ADAA is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention, treatment, and cure of anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, and related disorders and to improving the lives of all people who suffer from them through education, practice, and research.

04/01/2015

PEARL is very excited to share the articles of one of our very own research assistants Sarah Knapp. Congratulations Sarah!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-knapp/anxiety-leads-to-depressi_b_6165906.html

The relationship between depression and anxiety is not just a one-way street. Having an anxiety disorder is the single most significant predictor that a person will develop depression....

03/11/2015

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/11/fashion/modern-love-to-fall-in-love-with-anyone-do-this.html?_r=1

Arthur Aron’s study taught me that it’s possible — simple, even — to generate trust and intimacy, the feelings love needs to thrive.

What happens if you decide that falling in love is not something that happens to you, but something that you do?