Grant Category:	Fulbright-Nehru Student Research Program
Field of Specialization:	Psychology
Name:	Mr. Eric McDermott
Official Address:	an Diego State University, California
Indian Host Institution:	National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bengaluru, Karnataka.
Duration of Grant & Start Date :	Duration: 9 months August 2011

Brief Bio:

Mr. Eric McDermott graduated from San Diego State University with a B.A. in psychology and received summa cum laude honors. Throughout his undergraduate career, Mr. McDermott engaged in a myriad of research projects. He conducted a motor lab for Huntington's Disease (HD) to examine motor abilities in relation to cognitive decline. He also investigated auditory vs. visual learning modalities in relation to information comprehended and retained. During a study abroad stint in Edinburgh, Scotland, Mr. McDermott studied cognitive neuroscience and researched facial processing in relation to perception and judgment, where he received an Award of Merit for high marks. After graduation, he has been working as a behavioral therapist for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as well as researching motivational learning systems in Parkinson's disease (PD) in relation to personality. His interests are in the realm of psychology and neuroscience, to include HD, PD, ASD, human perception and consciousness. Mr. McDermott aspires to pursue a Ph. D. in Cognitive Neuroscience. Mr. McDermott's Fulbright-Nehru research titled "Neuropsychological Assessments and Huntington's disease," will conduct neuropsychological assessments measuring personality traits, motor skills and cognitive function on a pre-screened Huntington's disease (HD) group at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), as well as investigate cultural-bias on these assessments within the diverse social stratification of the population. From his findings, he hopes to be able to more accurately predict the progression of the disease in patients with the HD-gene, allowing future research to further pinpoint early-marker symptoms, as well as develop normative data within India on vital assessments of motor and executive function.