In our last newsletter, we talked about setting our own goals and intentions for 2026. In this edition, we talk about what the fields of psychology and neuroscience are foreseeing as trends for the year. From artificial intelligence (AI) to organoids, read on to learn more! 

Artificial Intelligence 🤖

AI-powered tools could help scientists better understand mechanisms underlying psychiatric disease states and inform novel interventions by unraveling complex biological interactions. However, scientists will need to be proactive in determining resource needs of projects, to ensure that environmental strain associated with AI is minimized. Additionally, scientists should use closed systems that protect participants’ data.  

With the rise of AI, we have also seen an increase in engagement with chatbots and digital companions. It is important to remember that these chatbots and companions are not trained to deliver quality therapeutic care; rather, they are trained to keep you online and engaged for as long as possible. Read our previous newsletter to learn more about the dangers of AI chatbots, and how you can protect the youth in your life while supporting their mental health journey.  

Community Representation in Research 🤝

Despite federal efforts to stifle diverse voices in psychology and neuroscience, we are happy to see more and more labs incorporating community-engaged research practices into their study designs. We here at the Ruvvy Resilience Lab are grateful to our Community Advisory Board members who help guide the work that we do. You can read more about our CAB and the work that they are doing here! 

We are also excited to see an increase in qualitative data collection in the field that is, incorporating stories, narratives, and reflections of participants’ lived experiences in psychology and neuroscience research.  

Mind-Body Interventions 🧘

As federal policy shifts are making access to quality mental health care more and more challenging, we are seeing a rise in digital tools, community offerings, and school-based models that share practices like meditation, art interventions, movement interventions, and more at a more scalable level. It is clear the interest and investment the public is willing to make in these modalities; it is our job as scientists to properly assess such modalities to ensure that we optimize the way in which these practices are delivered and that the claims made about them stand up.  

We here at the Ruvvy Resilience Lab are invested in this line of research, and we are excited to start a trial of school-based art therapy and yoga/mindfulness programs this year! Make sure you are subscribed to hear project updates over the next year.  

Organoids 🧬

Organoids are synthetically made miniaturized versions of the organs and tissues that compose our bodies. Organoids have the potential in research to serve as models of how the body develops and ages, as well as how diseases arise in the body and progress. Organoids could provide a model for scientists to test new treatments for disease that reduce the number of animals in research and more accurately model disease states specific to humans.  

Last year down the road at Michigan State University, scientists created a human heart organoid to study atrial fibrillation (an irregular heartbeat). This new development will provide scientists with a more accurate model of the human heart to study, so that they can help the approximately 60 million people around the world with atrial fibrillation.  

With the newly introduced Standardized Organoid Modeling Center at the National Institutes of Health, we will likely see more investment and progress made in organoids over the next year.  

Tell Us What You Think! ✉️

Which of these developments are you most excited about? What do you have questions or concerns regarding? Email us at [email protected]! We would love to hear from you and answer your questions.  

The Greenhouse of the Mind:

Resources to Help You Bloom

Parenting While Black (Webinar)

Parenting While Black is an interactive, reflective webinar centered on the lived experiences of Black parents, caregivers, and families. The session explores how legal history has shaped Black family life while honoring the resilience, love, and community-building practices sustained across generations.

Through guided discussion and collective learning, participants will connect historical context to present-day parenting and caregiving realities in a healing and empowering space.

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