Michael Demidenko, PhD
Brain Imaging | Data Analytics | Measurement | Reproducibility | Open Science
Who Am I?
Michael Demidenko
Research Scientist at Stanford University in the Poldrack Lab.
Graduated with Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Michigan & did my an NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship at Stanford.
Research Interests
Neuroimaging (fMRI), Quantitative Research, Developmental Psychology (adolescence), and Open and Reproducible Science.
More+
For my details about my experience, see my Research and CV/Resume pages
Open to consulting services in data analytics, measurement problems, reproducible science, and fMRI.
If you're interested, please check out Consulting.
Years Research Experience
Research Products
# Backflips Completed
Research Interests
Data Analysis
Each research question encounters the problem of selecting the appropriate analysis to answer the question. I focus on defining a problem space & then selecting the most appropriate analytic strategy to address that research question. If I'm unfamiliar with a strategy, I try to leverage materials (e.g., workshops, courses, books) to get up to speed for those analyses. I use open-source methods, such as Github, R and/or Python, to document the code and ensure the reproducibility of the analyses.
Measurement
Measurement is crucial when attempting to identify associations in rich datasets and making appropriate interpretations between variables that are relevant to human behaviors. I focus on measurement issues, such as valid interpretation & reliable measurement of numerical datapoints, to get a sense of what is and isn't appropriate to say with the collected variables.
Brain Imaging
fMRI is a powerful tool to non-invasively measure global neural activity in the brain. I use fMRI as a tool to ask neurobiological questions as they relate to substance use behaviors and human development. Due to it's largely experimental roots and increasing introduction into correlational work, I try to integrate modern measurement issues into fMRI analytic techniques.
Dev. Psych.
Development in animals is fascinating. Humans, like other animals, experience multiple developmental stages during their life-span. Developmental has non-specific and stage emergent and specific changes. Hence, Childhood is different from Adolescence and Adolescence is different from Adulthood. Due to Adolescent specific and emergent features, I focus on Adolescent development to understand how the critical development stage impacts future decision-making and health-related outcomes.