Emily Falk facts for kids

Emily B. Falk is an American scientist who studies how our brains work. She is a professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. She teaches about communication, psychology, and even marketing.

About Emily Falk

Emily Falk went to Brown University to study the brain, which is called neuroscience. After that, she went to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). There, she earned her master's and Ph.D. degrees in psychology. Psychology is the study of the mind and how people think and behave.

Before joining the University of Pennsylvania, Professor Falk taught at the University of Michigan. She was an assistant professor of communication there.

What Emily Falk Researches

Emily Falk leads a special research group called the Communication Neuroscience Lab. In this lab, scientists study how our brains react to messages. They want to understand how brain activity connects to what people do. This includes actions by individuals, groups, and even large populations.

Predicting Behavior Change

One big part of her research is predicting how people will change their behavior. For example, her team looks at how persuasive messages can make people:

• Use sunscreen more often.
• Stop smoking tobacco.
• Be less sedentary (meaning they move around more).

They study how brain responses to health messages can predict what many people will do. This helps create better public health campaigns.

Awards and Honors

Emily Falk has received many important awards for her scientific work. Some of these include:

• The 2012 National Institutes of Health Director's New Innovator Award. This award helps new scientists with fresh ideas.
• The 2017 International Communication Association (ICA) Early Career Scholar Award. This award recognizes promising young researchers.
• The 2020 Social & Affective Neuroscience Society (SANS) Early Career Award. This award is for scientists who are just starting their careers in social and emotional brain studies.