January 11, 2022

In her blog post on Medium and Psychology Today, "5 Ways Children's Genes Shape their Behavior," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick provides readers with five ways that genes impact a child's behavior. 

December 15, 2021

In her blog post on Medium and Psychology Today, "How to Improve Self-Control in Children," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick offers readers proven methods to help their children with self-control. 

November 15, 2021

In her blog post on Medium and Psychology Today, "How to Curb Defiant Behavior in Children," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick provides readers with three simple steps to improve child compliance and get your child invested in the positive change you want to see.  

November 8, 2021

In her blog post on Medium, "How Your Child’s Genes Influence Their Development," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick explains to readers the influence of genetics on a child's personality.

November 5, 2021

In her blog post on Psychology Today and Medium, "What's Your Child's Unique Nature?" EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick provides readers with a quiz to help parents figure out parenting strategies that work best for their unique child.

November 3, 2021

In her blog post on Medium, "Why is Parenting So Darn Hard?" EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick shares an excerpt from her book, The Child Code, and shares the importance of understanding your child's genetically influenced disposition. 

October 27, 2021

In her blog post on Medium as "The Secret to Improving Your Relationship," and Psychology Today in separate parts, "The Secret to Improving Your Relationship" and "How to Navigate Differences of Opinion in Your Relationship" EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick informs readers why knowing how your partner's brain works is key to relationship happiness.

October 12, 2021

In her blog post on Medium and Psychology Today, "Planning a Day of Fun with Your Child that You Both Enjoy," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick informs readers how to plan fun activities with your child that match their personality. 

September 29, 2021

In her blog post on Medium, "How your environment impacts you," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick informs readers about the connection between our genes and environment and its impact on our behaviors. 

September 17, 2021

In her blog post on Medium, "The Hidden Force Shaping Your Behavior," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick explains how understanding your genetic disposition can help you live your best life. 

September 16, 2021

In her blog post on Psychology Today, "3 Reasons Parents Can Worry Less," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick reassures parents who are concerned about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on their children that their children are likely more resilient than they imagine. 

September 14, 2021

EDGE Lab Director, Danielle Dick, Ph.D. released her new book, The Child Code, now available online through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kindle, Apple Books, and GooglePlay. This book uses scientific-based approaches to answer the quandaries that arise from parenting. 

September 14, 2021

Former EDGE Lab Research Associate, Sally Kuo, Ph.D. along with Assistant Professor, Fazil Aliev, Ph.D., EDGE Lab Director, Danielle Dick, Ph.D., and collaborator Jinni Su, Ph.D., recently published a new study featured in Arizona State University Newswise highlighting discoveries from their paper The associations between polygenic risk, sensation seeking, social support, and alcohol use in adulthood.

August 30, 2021

EDGE Lab Director Danielle Dick, Ph.D., along with professor of social science genetics at the University of Wisconsin Madison and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Philipp Koellinger, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, Kathryn Paige Harden, Ph.D., and professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego, Abraham Palmer, Ph.D. recently published a new study featured in a VCU News Press Release headlining findings from their paper Multivariate analysis of 1.5 million people identifies genetic associations with traits related to self-regulation and addiction. 

August 26, 2021

In her most recent blog post on Psychology Today, "How Much Self-Control Do You Have? Your Genes Hold a Clue," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick introduces readers to a new study looking at the connections between genetics and a child's ability to self-control their impulses. 

July 12, 2021

EDGE Lab director, Danielle Dick, Ph.D. has published a book, The Child Code, currently available for preorder on the website https://www.thechildcode.com and set to be released in September 2021. This book introduces new concepts in the theory of childrearing while using science-driven practices that provide practical individualized strategies for navigating challenges and nurturing strengths. 

June 2, 2021

A new study led by EDGE Lab Associate Director Dr. Jessica Salvatore and collaborator Dr. Katherine Haydon explored the effects of COVID-19 on participants' well-being, substance use, and mental health early in the pandemic to introduce new insights on the topic of COVID-19. 

May 12, 2021

April 22, 2021

EDGE Lab graduate student, Rebecca Smith, and Associate Director, Jessica Salvatore were featured in a VCU News Press Release focused on exciting findings from their longitudinal study of the moderating effects of romantic relationships on the associations between alcohol use and trauma in college students.

March 24, 2021

EDGE Lab researchers Nate Thomas, Amy Adkins, Ph.D. and Danielle Dick, Ph.D. were featured in a VCU News Press Release highlighting exciting new findings from their team's recent paper Longitudinal Influence of Behavioral Health, Emotional Health, and Student Involvement on College Student Retention.

March 11, 2021

The VCU Institute for Women's Health has named EDGE Lab Faculty, Dr. Amy Adkins, to their list of VCU Women Making History for Women's History Month 2021. Dr. Adkins works to enhance diversity in the biobehavioral research workforce by inspiring undergraduates to explore the research world. 

March 1, 2021

EDGE Lab Director, Dr. Danielle Dick, and Coordinator, Emily Balcke, partnered with substance use researchers and Research-to-Policy Collaboration to develop a fact sheet, "Teen and College Student Alcohol Use During COVID-19" to inform policymakers across the country. 

February 11, 2021

EDGE Lab program VCU GREAT was the focus of the opening segment VCU President Michael Rao's 2021 State of the University Address: Emerging Stronger Together! Check out the first few minutes of the address to hear from 2020 VCU GREAT fellow Stephanie Cull about her GREAT experience!

October 14, 2020

Spit for Science is seeking undergraduate research assistants for Spring 2021 to assist with education and outreach, and work in teams to develop research questions and analyze Spit for Science data. 

September 18, 2020

Multiple positions at the postdoc and Research Associate (faculty) level are available in the EDGE laboratory (Examining Development, Genes, and Environments) at Virginia Commonwealth University (edge.vcu.edu).

September 14, 2020

EDGE Lab Directors, Drs. Danielle Dick and Jessica Salvatore, have been awarded a five-year $3 million grant by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to explore the development of alcohol misuse and related problems from adolescence into early midlife. 

August 31, 2020

EDGE Lab program, VCU GREAT, made headlines this week for its efforts to offer hands on research opportunities to undergraduate students from groups historically underrepresented in research. 

August 24, 2020

EDGE Lab Associate Director, Jessica Salvatore, was featured in a VCU News Press Release highlighting fascinating new findings from her team's recent paper Disentangling Social-Genetic From Rearing-Environment Effects for Alcohol Use Disorder Using Swedish National Data.

August 18, 2020

In her most recent blog post on Psychology Today, "Yes, Your Kids Will Be Okay," EDGE Lab Director, Dr. Danielle Dick assures parents that despite the very real hardships brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, child development research shows that children are incredibly resilient and will get through this. 

July 2, 2020

EDGE Lab graduate student, Rebecca Smith, and former EDGE Lab research associate, Seung Bin Cho were featured in a VCU News Press Release focused on exciting findings from their study Using a Developmental Perspective to Examine the Moderating Effects of Marriage on Heavy Episodic Drinking in a Young Adult Sample Enriched for Risk.

June 5, 2020

In her latest blog post on Psychology Today, "5 Ways to Keep Alcohol Use in Check During Stressful Times," EDGE Lab Director Dr. Danielle Dick offers five ways to help you avoid falling into harmful patterns of alcohol use during these challenging times.

May 8, 2020

In her blog post on Psychology Today, "Worried About Alcohol Use During the Pandemic?," Dr. Danielle Dick, Director of EDGE Lab, writes about the importance of understanding your genetic risk for alcohol problems amid the soaring alcohol sales and increased drinking habits accompanying the COVID-19 pandemic. 

May 8, 2020

The VCU Psychology Department award and scholarship recipients have been announced, and graduate student Zoe Neale was presented with the Outstanding Clinical Psychology Behavioral Medicine Concentration Graduate Student Award.

May 1, 2020

VCU announced Dr. Danielle Dick, Director of EDGE Lab, to be one of twenty Virginia Commonwealth University faculty members to receive internal awards to quickly pivot or expand her work to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the health system and the community.

November 10, 2017

In a study entitled “The Role of Social, Familial, and Individual-Level Factors on Multiple Alcohol Use Outcomes During the First Year of University,” doctoral student Megan Cooke and a team of COBE researchers looked at Spit for Science data to learn more about predictors of first year alcohol use across a wide range of alcohol use behavior.

November 8, 2017

A new study by VCU researcher Peter Barr published in the Journal on Studies of Alcohol and Drugs examined whether involvement in committed relationships or social support impact heavy drinking during young adulthood.

October 20, 2017

Dr. Danielle Dick, a leading international researcher on the genetics of addiction and the Director of COBE, talks about the key things we know about the genetics of addiction from her 20 years of research in the field.

October 6, 2017

Over the last 20 years, researchers have made huge steps in understanding the relationship between genes, environment and complex traits. While these advances are heralded as leading to a future of improved health outcomes, individuals of minority descent are underrepresented in genetic research and thus are unlikely to benefit equally from advances in genetics.

August 29, 2017

Dr. Danielle Dick reflects on the growth of her field, examines opportunities to use gene-environment analysis to inform prevention research and surveys ethical concerns broadly related to the study of genetics in a special edition of Prevention Science.

June 16, 2017

Marnie Brennan, a senior at Collegiate School in Richmond, Va., recently completed a three week internship with the EDGE Lab at VCU where she surveyed substance use research published by members of the group, created a survey on translation of research and media consumption and presented her findings to the lab.

March 17, 2017

Nate Thomas, a COBE research assistant and recent graduate of the International Programme in Addiction Studies (IPAS), received the IPAS Most Outstanding Student Award for 2015-2016.

February 7, 2017

VCU researchers Dr. Kenneth Kendler, M.D., and Dr. Jessica Salvatore and their Swedish counterparts Sara Larsson Lönn, Jan Sundquist, Kristina Sundquist and Paul Lichtenstein untangle the complex relationship underlying AUD and divorce.

January 26, 2017

Nearly one in five college students experience sexual assault, with women facing significantly higher rates compared with men.

January 19, 2017

Rose Bono, a research assistant at the Department of Health Behavior and Policy, and health behavior and policy researcher Dr. Andrew Barnes, teamed up with COBE director Dr. Danielle Dick and Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics director Dr. Kenneth Kendler to study the relationship between substance use and employment in college students based on data from Spit for Science.

January 10, 2017

When it comes to problems with alcohol use, genes play an increasingly important role as you get older. But scientists still struggle to pinpoint exactly which genes are most to blame.

December 14, 2016

The Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics pre- and post-doc awards were announced in early December, and graduate student Megan Cooke was presented with the Kenneth S. Kendler Award for Excellence in Pre-Doctoral Research.

October 25, 2016

Jinni Su, a postdoctoral researcher with the EDGE Lab and COBE, was recently awarded a $5,000 grant by the VCU Postdoctoral Scholar Association for a spinoff research project based on Spit for Science.

October 6, 2016

The Genetics and Human Agency Initiative recently gave a Junior Investigator award to COBE researcher Dr. Jessica Salvatore, Assistant Professor in the VCU Department of Psychology and the Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics.

May 13, 2016

EDGE Lab associate director Jessica Salvatore, Ph.D., has received a roughly $750,000 grant to study the complex interplay between alcohol abuse, romantic relationships and genetic predispositions to alcoholism during emerging adulthood.

March 8, 2016

Congratulations to EDGE Lab member Dr. Amy Adkins, who was recently awarded a Quest Innovation Award!

November 9, 2015

Binge drinking is a growing problem in the United States, but are all problem drinkers the same? That is a question Virginia Commonwealth University student Megan Cooke hopes to answer.

November 4, 2015

In a recent issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors, co-authors Seung Bin Cho, Ph.D., a Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Psychiatry postdoctoral fellow, and University of Virginia Department of Pediatrics assistant professor Erin Berenz, Ph.D., utilized data from the Spit 4 Science research project to illuminate relationships between trauma before and during college and alcohol consumption.

November 3, 2015

Does it ever seem like everyone else has all of the fun? Has that kind of thinking ever influenced your decisions around alcohol, substance use or sex?