Student Research Spotlight - Sarah Krichbaum
Sarah Krichbaum won the Graduate Student Research Award for the College of Liberal Arts during the 2020 Auburn Research: Virtual Student Symposium.
Hometown: Canton, Ohio
Major and degree: Doctoral Student in Cognitive and Behavioral Sciences
College: Liberal Arts
Department: Psychological Sciences
Faculty mentors: Jeffrey Katz
Executive Functioning in Dogs
What are you researching?
I am studying factors that influence executive functioning (working memory, sustained attention and inhibitory control) in detection dogs at Canine Performance Sciences. The purpose of the research is to validate current measures of executive functioning using short cognitive tasks and to investigate how these abilities relate to detection dog success.
How could the results benefit individuals, agencies or companies?
This work will create a foundation for properly measuring executive functioning in dogs and provide evidence of cognitive measures that can predict desirable traits in detection dogs.
Tell us why you enjoy research.
I enjoy getting to work closely with high-drive, intelligent and lovable dogs to uncover characteristics that are important for their success. However, it is truly my wonderful lab mates and collaborators that make it all possible!
What advice would you give to other students considering doing a research project?
I think one of the most important things to consider when doing a research project is the project plan. The more comprehensive the plan, the easier it will be to shift things when something comes up. Always have hypotheses!
Tell us about any hobbies or activities you enjoy.
I enjoy taking my dog on just about any outdoor adventure.
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