Rebecca MacAulay

Rebecca MacAulayAssociate Professor
362 Williams Hall
207-581-2044
rebecca.macaulay@maine.edu

Research Gate

Lab website

**Note to applicants: Dr. MacAulay plans to recruit a graduate student to start in fall 2023.

 

Research Interests

Broadly, my research focuses on understanding cognitive aging processes. My research aims to: (1) better understand factors that increase risk and resilience to cognitive decline across the adult life span, (2) increase the sensitivity and external validity of assessment techniques used to detect preclinical stages of neurological impairment, and (3) apply this research to future intervention models in order to improve functional outcomes in older adults.

Specific programs of research include:

Investigation of link between motor and cognitive decline
Development of motor-cognitive screener measures to use within primary care settings
Role of attention network functioning in motor and affective disturbances
Understanding the relationship between depression and anxiety with cognitive decline
Development of brief cognitive-behavioral interventions for older adult populations

Selected Publications

MacAulay, R. K., Halpin, A., Cohen, A. S., Boeve, A., Calamia, M., Brouillette, R. M., Foil, H. C., Bruce-Keller, A. J., & Keller, J. N. (2020). Predictors of Heterogeneity in Cognitive Function: Depression, APOE-e4, Cognitive Reserve, and Vascular Risk. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology35(6), 660-670. doi:10.1093/arclin/acaa014

Lowe, D., MacAulay, R. K., Szeles, D., Milano, N.J., & Wagner, M.T. (2020). Dual-Task Gait Assessment in a Clinical Sample: Implications for Improved Detection of Mild Cognitive Impairment. The Journal of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences, 75(7), 1372-1381doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbz119

Bernstein, J., De Vito, A., Weitzner, D., MacAulay, R. K., Calamia, M., Brouillette, R. M., Foil, H. C., … & Keller, J. N. (2020). Examining Relationships Between Multiple Self-Report Sleep Measures and Gait Domains in Cognitively Healthy Older Adults. Gerontology, 66, 47-54. doi: 10.1159/000499737

MacAulay, R. K., Edelman, P., Boeve, A., Sprangers, N., & Halpin, A. (2019). Group music training as a multimodal cognitive intervention for older adults. Psychomusicology: Music, Mind, and Brain, 29(4), 180–187. doi: 10.1037/pmu0000239

MacAulay, R. K., Calamia, M. R., Cohen, A. S., Daigle, K., Foil, H., Brouillette, R., … & Keller, J. N. (2018). Understanding heterogeneity in older adults: Latent growth curve modeling of cognitive functioning. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology40(3), 292-302. doi: 10.1080/13803395.2017.1342772

MacAulay, R. K., Wagner, M. T., Szeles, D., & Milano, N. J. (2017). Improving Sensitivity to Detect Mild Cognitive Impairment: Cognitive load dual-task gait assessment. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society (JINS), 23(6), 493-501. doi: 10.1017/S1355617717000261

Wagner, M. T., Mithoerfer, M. C., Mithoefer, A. T., MacAulay, R. K., Jerome, L., Yazar-Klosinski, B., & Doblin, R. (2017). Therapeutic Effect of Increased Openness: Investigating mechanism of action in a MDMA-assisted randomized psychotherapy. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 31, 967-974doi: 0269881117711712

MacAulay, R. K., Allaire, T., Brouillette, R., Foil, H., Bruce-Keller, A. J., & Keller, J. N. (2016). Apolipoprotein E genotype linked to spatial gait characteristics: predictors of cognitive dual task gait change. PLOS One11(8), e0156732. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0156732

MacAulay, R. K., Allaire, T., Brouillette, R. M., Foil, H. C., Bruce-Keller, A. J., Han, H., Johnson, W. D. & Keller, J. N. (2015). Longitudinal Assessment of Neuropsychological and Physical Characteristics of Elderly Fallers: Taking it all in stride. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 7, 34. doi:10.3389/fnagi.2015.00034

MacAulay, R. K., Brouillette, R. M., Foil, H. C., Bruce-Keller, A. J., & Keller, J. N. (2014). A longitudinal study on dual-tasking effects on gait: Cognitive change predicts gait variance in the elderly. PLOS One9(6), e99436. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0099436