The Science of Stress & Health

The Lab at NDSU

Setting up a virtual reality psychophysiology session in the lab. Our lab is dedicated to examining interactions among the mind, body, and environment as they pertain to health and health-related outcomes. Our primary focus is on how stress affects health. We apply social psychological methods to help us determine who…Continue reading “The Lab at NDSU”

23Oct 202623 Oct 2026

A research assistant in a white lab coat shows a VR headset to a seated participant while a second research assistant in a lab coat smiles from the computer station.

Join Our Lab: Undergraduate Research Assistants Wanted for Spring 2027

Curious about how stress affects the body, and what that means for our health? Dr. Hilmert’s Health Psychology lab is…

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Psychology Major Feature

NDSU University Relations produced a short video about the psychology major at NDSU featuring our lab. One of our excellent…

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Mind, Body, & Baby Lab

The Mind, Body & Baby (MBB) Lab studies how stress during pregnancy relates to maternal physiology, fetal growth, and birth…

From the Lab…

New Paper: Heart Rate Variability and Depression in Pregnancy

15 Nov 202423 Oct 2026

Congratulations to Garrett Byron on his new first-author paper in the Journal of Affective Disorders! Among 80 pregnant women, depressive symptoms predicted less fetal growth only for women with higher…

From the Lab…

Red River Psychology Conference 2024

29 Apr 202423 Oct 2026

The lab brought two posters to the 2024 Red River Psychology Conference in Moorhead. Congratulations to everyone who presented! Diet and PTSD symptoms Jani Western (then Skala) presented a pilot…

From the Lab…

Midwestern Psychological Association 2024

22 Apr 202423 Oct 2026

Garrett Byron presented new work from our virtual reality stress paradigm at the Midwestern Psychological Association Annual Conference in Chicago. In this study, participants completed the Trier Social Stress Test…

Avenues of Scientific Discovery 2024

5 Apr 202423 Oct 2026

For the third year in a row, our lab teamed up with Dr. Kat Duggan's lab to take part in NDSU's Avenues of Scientific Discovery! We gave a 90-minute presentation…

From the Lab…

New Paper: Acculturation, Blood Pressure, and Birth Weight

20 Feb 202423 Oct 2026

Congratulations to Dr. Anna Strahm on her new paper in Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology! In a study of more than 1,000 U.S.-born and foreign-born Latina women, greater U.S.…

From the Lab…

Two Posters at SPSP 2024

12 Feb 202423 Oct 2026

The lab had a strong showing at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Convention in San Diego, February 8-10, with two posters from our survey of stress and…