Dr. Adriene Beltz
Director
[email protected] | 734.647.6788
Dr. Adriene Beltz is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan. She is affiliated with the developmental area and plays a significant role in the department’s quantitative training, including the teaching of graduate methods courses. She is also a Research Professor in the Institute for Social Research within the Population, Neurodevelopment and Genetics Program of the Survey Research Center.
Dr. Beltz's research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, James S. McDonnell Foundation, and Jacobs Foundation. She is an elected member of the Society for Multivariate Experimental Psychology, and has received awards from the Committee on Women in Psychology, Division 5 (Methods), and Division 6 (Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology) of the American Psychological Association as well as a Rising Star Award and Fellow status from the Association for Psychological Science. Finally, she serves in editorial roles for several journals, including as an associate editor at Multivariate Behavioral Research.
Dr. Beltz received her Ph.D. in Psychology, specializing in Social, Cognitive, and Affective Neuroscience from the Pennsylvania State University in 2014. Her training was supervised by Dr. Sheri Berenbaum, an expert in human behavioral endocrinology. Dr. Beltz then transitioned to a two-year post-doctoral position in Human Development and Family Studies at the same university. She worked with the internationally-renowned methodologist, Dr. Peter Molenaar, on person-specific connectivity analysis approaches. Prior to Penn State, Dr. Beltz received her B.S. in Psychology and M.S. in Experimental Psychology at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.
Grace Zhu
Lab Coordinator
[email protected] | 734.647.5673
Grace Zhu is a lab coordinator for the M(SD) Lab. She earned her B.A. in Cognitive Science and Psychology from the University of Michigan in 2025 and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Data Analytics at the University of Michigan School of Information. Grace is interested in exploring the effects of hormones, specifically from birth control, and the roles that it plays on sex differences and development.
Dr. Christel Portengen
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Christel Portengen is a postdoctoral fellow at the M(SD) Lab. Her research focuses on the biological and psychosocial predictors of sex/gender differences in behavior across the lifespan. Christel obtained her Ph.D. in 2024 from the department of Clinical Child and Family Studies at Utrecht University, the Netherlands, where she examined the neural and cognitive predictors and consequences of parental gender socialization in early childhood. During her Ph.D., Christel spent three months in 2023 at the M(SD) lab as a visiting scholar, before returning as a postdoctoral fellow in 2024. Before starting her Ph.D. training, she obtained her bachelor degree in Psychology from Tilburg University and a master in Neuropsychology at Maastricht University. In her free time, Christel enjoys taking her dog on hikes, attending music concerts, going on road trips, and traveling the world.
Dr. Esmeralda Hidalgo-Lopez
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Esmeralda Hidalgo-Lopez is currently a research fellow at the University of Michigan, where she is co-mentored by Dr. Adriene Beltz at the M(SD) Lab and Dr. Chelsea Kaplan at the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center. Her work focuses on examining sex differences and pubertal hormone contributions to the neurobiology underlying pain in the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study.
Dr. Hidalgo-Lopez specialized in Neuroendocrinology during her doctoral studies at the University of Salzburg, Austria, under the supervision of Prof. Belinda Pletzer. Her doctoral thesis and subsequent post-doctoral fellowship focused on ovarian hormone links to brain activation and connectivity across the menstrual cycle, as well as investigating the effects of oral contraceptives on brain and behavior. Prior to that, she received her B.S. in Clinical Psychology and M.S. in Neuroscience from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
Lindzey Hoover
Graduate Student
Lindzey is a 4th year doctoral student in the clinical science program. Lindzey received a B.S. in Psychology from Eureka College in central Illinois in 2016. She is broadly interested in investigating the addictive potential of highly processed foods.
T. Ariel Yang
Graduate Student
Ariel is a third-year graduate student in the Joint Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies Program. She received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Gender and Women’s Studies (GWS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2021. At UW-Madison, Ariel worked at Dr. Patricia Devine’s Prejudice and Intergroup Relation Lab and completed a senior honors thesis in GWS with Dr. Janet Hyde. Broadly speaking, Ariel is interested in gender and sex – why and how various sociocultural and biological factors influence gender differences and similarities in sexuality.
Ran Yan
Graduate Student
Rachel (Ran) Yan is a third year doctoral student in the Developmental Psychology program. Rachel is broadly interested in disentangling the influence of family dynamics and biological factors on children’s psychological well-being, using novel statistical methods.
Rachel received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Smith College in 2021. Before joining the M(SD) lab, Rachel was part of the Child Development & Language Acquisition Lab at Smith College, working with Dr. Peter de Villiers. She also worked as an undergraduate research assistant with Dr. Samuel Mehr at the Music Lab. During her free time, she enjoys playing the piano and cooking.
Priyanka Malek
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Priyanka is a junior majoring in Psychology, with a minor in Gender and Health. She joined this lab because she is interested in learning about the role that sex hormones play in people's lives, and how it impacts their well-being. Outside of the lab, she likes to read books, play games, and hang out with close friends. In the future, she plans to attend graduate school for Clinical Psychology, after taking a gap year.
Amber Wilkins
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Amber is a sophomore majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in Gender and Health. She joined this lab because she is interested in how hormones influence both the brain and behavior, as well as how sex differences manifest across the lifespan. Outside of the lab, Amber is involved in a reproductive justice student organization and enjoys traveling, thrifting, and trying new restaurants and cafes around Ann Arbor. In the future, she plans to attend graduate school.
Valerie Huang
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Valerie is a Sophomore majoring in Psychology. She joined the lab because she was interested in studying sex differences across development. In her free time, Valerie works at a preschool, reads mystery novels, and spends time with her friends. After she graduates, her goal is to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology in the hopes of becoming a child psychotherapist.
Beth Elewany
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Beth is a junior majoring in Neuroscience. She joined the lab because she is interested in studying the effects of hormones on development and how they relate to sex differences. Outside the lab, she enjoys discovering new restaurants and places with friends, playing tennis, and volunteering at the hospital. Beth is hoping to attend medical school after she graduates.
Rawan Farhat
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Rawan is a junior majoring in Biopsychology, Cognitive, and Neuroscience with a minor in entrepreneurship. Rawan joined this lab because she is interested in the correlation between sex differences and hormone effects. Outside of the lab, she volunteers at the hospital and works at urgent care and also enjoys spending time with her friends exploring downtown Ann Arbor. After graduation, she plans on attending medical school.
Charlotte Worrel
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Charlotte Worrel is a junior majoring in Cognitive Science and Psychology with a minor in French. She joined the lab to deepen her understanding of the effects of hormones on cognition and emotion, and to study sex differences in psychopathology. Outside of the lab, Charlotte serves on the board of the Cognitive Science Community, volunteers at the hospital, and enjoys reading and baking. After graduation, she plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology.
