The National Academy of Sciences has announced the 2026 recipients of the Troland Research Award, an annual cash prize that commemorates the exceptional achievements of two early-career researchers in experimental psychology. This year’s recipients are M. J. Crockett, PhD, and Jason D. Yeatman, PhD. Crockett is a moral psychologist and neuroscientist at Princeton University, conducting research into the cognitive science of ethics, knowledge, and power, with a particular focus on understanding the nature of injustice. Yeatman is an associate professor at Stanford University, where he directs the Brain Development and Education Lab, combining psychology and neuroscience to study dyslexia in children.
The National Academy of Education has named 19 scholars in education and leadership to its membership. Among these are three psychologists. Peggy Carr, PhD, a developmental psychologist and current visiting professor at the University of Maryland, served as the commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics from 2021 until 2025. Tabbye Chavous, PhD, a professor of education and psychology at the University of Michigan, researches the impact of race and diversity on identity and motivation processes. Ronald Marx, PhD, an educational psychologist currently serving as the dean of education emeritus at the University of Arizona, researches the enhancement of science education in urban schools.
Sonia Chawla, PhD, has been named assistant vice president of research integrity at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Chawla previously served as the assistant vice president of academic research and regulatory compliance and as the director of research compliance at Eastern Michigan University. Her research focuses on child development.
JanNette McMenamy, PhD, was named associate provost at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts. McMenamy, who assumed the position in May, is a developmental psychologist and has held several roles at the university throughout her 20-year career. She previously served as chair of the psychology department and dean of the School of Health and Natural Sciences.
Jennifer Mize Nelson, PhD, is the new vice chancellor for research and innovation at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. A clinical child psychologist, she has previously held positions in the university’s psychology department and developmental cognitive neuroscience laboratory. Nelson’s research focuses on the relationship between executive control development and physical and mental health.
David Lubinski, PhD, has received the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s Dunnette Prize, which recognizes significant and lasting advancements in the field. Lubinski, a professor of psychology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, is also an investigator at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development. Lubinski’s research focuses on precocious youth and talent development.
Irene M. Pepperberg, PhD, has been presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Jeremy Coller Foundation for her almost 50 years of work on gray parrot communication and cognition. Pepperberg is a research professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Boston University. The award came with a stipend of $10,000 to continue her research. Pepperberg studies the learning mechanisms and outcomes of gray parrots and has compared their cognitive abilities with those of young children.
