Image: Dr. Abney is an Assistant Professor in the Behavioral and Brain Sciences Program and serves as Graduate Coordinator for the Department of Psychology. Before joining the University of Georgia’s faculty in the fall of 2020, he earned a PhD in Cognitive and Information Sciences at the University of California, Merced, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Developmental Psychology at Indiana University. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on statistics, research design, and computer programming. He is the primary advisor to three graduate students and mentors 10-15 undergraduate research assistants each semester. As director of the Developmental Dynamics Lab, Dr. Abney explores a range of topics in human development, from how infants learn to communicate to how children learn to regulate their emotions, and how sleep impacts development. His innovative techniques for capturing and analyzing data have garnered him both recognition and support. Dr. Abney’s research is currently funded by grants from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, and the James S. McDonnell Foundation. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Rising Star research award from the Owens Institute for Behavioral Research, the Early Career Scholar award from the University of Georgia, and the department-wide Outstanding Teaching Award from the University of Georgia’s Department of Psychology. Dr. Drew Abney is married to Dr. Rebecca Abney, a Soil Biogeochemist at UGA’s Warnell School of Forestry. They have an almost 2-year-old named Ailee, whose current favorite color is ‘lalyo’ (i.e., ‘yellow'), an Australian Shepard named Brinkley (aka: Mr. Brinkle Sprinkles), and a horse named Bombay. For fun, Drew likes trail running, avoiding venomous snakes while trail running, and checking out local music in Athens. Although he claims not to be very good at it, he also enjoys playing the banjo (Scruggs style).
