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Biography

Dr. Didem Pehlivanoglu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at �鶹Ů��. She earned her bachelor's degree in Psychology from Izmir University of Economics (Izmir, Turkey) and her master’s degree in Psychology from Bogazici University (Istanbul, Turkey). She completed her doctoral degree in Cognitive Aging, with a specialization in Cognitive Neuroscience, at the Georgia Institute of Technology. After completing her doctoral studies, Dr. Pehlivanoglu joined the University of Florida as a Postdoctoral Associate, where she further developed her research program in the cognitive, affective, and social neuroscience of aging.

Education

Postdoctoral Associate, Psychology, University of Florida

Ph.D., Cognitive Aging & Cognitive Neuroscience, Georgia Tech

M.A., Psychological Sciences, Bogazici University

B.S., Psychology, Izmir University of Economics

Research Interests

• Cognitive and affective neuroscience of aging
• Misinformation, phishing, and fraud vulnerability in aging
• The neuropeptide oxytocin and its role in social behavior in aging
• Computational modeling of social decision making and deception detection in aging
• Blood-based biomarkers of cognitive and affective functioning in aging
• Interventions to promote successful aging

Research Description

Dr. Pehlivanoglu is an experimental aging researcher with a background in cognitive and affective neuroscience. By combining behavioral and survey measures with neuroscientific techniques, including EEG/ERP, fMRI, and blood-based biomarkers, as well as computational approaches, her research investigates why some older adults maintain high levels of cognitive and socioemotional functioning while others experience greater challenges. Her work focuses on the cognitive and affective neuroscience of aging, with particular emphasis on cognitive control, social decision-making, susceptibility to misinformation, phishing, and fraud, as well as the biological and computational mechanisms that shape cognitive and socioemotional functioning in later life. Ultimately, her research seeks to identify factors that promote resilience and to develop interventions that support successful aging.

Prospective Students

Dr. Pehlivanoglu will be accepting graduate students for the 2027-2028 academic year. Graduate and undergraduate students interested in joining the lab should contact Dr. Pehlivanoglu to inquire about available research opportunities.

Selected Publications

Pehlivanoglu, D., Zhu, M., Zhen, J., Gagnon-Roberge, A., Kern, R., Woodard, D., Cahill, B. S., & Ebner, N. C. (2026). Is this real? Susceptibility to deepfakes in machines and humans. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 11(3).

Wang, S., Hakim, Z., Pehlivanoglu, D., Ebner, N. C., Grilli, M. D., & Wilson, R. C. (2026). Decomposing trust-related decision making: dimensionality and predictability of phishing susceptibility in an adult lifespan sample.��The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences,��81(8).

Hughes, C., Ebner, N. C., Pehlivanoglu, D., Heemskerk, A., Lin, T., Ten Brinke, L., ... & Spreng, R. N. (2025). Dissociable brain activity for high-stakes deception detection in young and older adults. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 20(1)

Pehlivanoglu, D., Shoenfelt, A., Hakim, Z., Heemskerk, A., Zhen, J., Mosqueda, M., ... & Ebner, N. C. (2024). Phishing vulnerability compounded by older age, apolipoprotein E e4 genotype, and lower cognition. PNAS Nexus, 3(8).

Pehlivanoglu, D., Lin, T., Lighthall, N. R., Heemskerk, A., Harber, A., Wilson, R., Turner, G. R., Spreng, R. N., & Ebner, N. C. (2023). Facial Trustworthiness Perception Across the Adult Lifespan. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences

Ebner, N. C., Pehlivanoglu, D., & Shoenfelt, A. (2023). Financial Fraud and Deception in Aging. Advances in Geriatric Medicine and Research, 5(3).

Pehlivanoglu, D., Lighthall, N. R., Lin, T., Chi, K. J., Polk, R., Perez, E., Cahill, B., & Ebner, N. C. (2022). Aging in an “infodemic”: The role of analytical reasoning, affect, and news consumption frequency on news veracity detection. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied.

Lin, T., Pehlivanoglu, D., Ziaei, M., Liu, P., Woods, A. J., Feifel, D., Fischer, H., & Ebner, N. C (2022). Age-related differences in amygdala activation associated with face trustworthiness but no evidence of oxytocin modulation. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 838642

Pehlivanoglu, D., Lin, T., Deceus, F., Heemskerk, A., Ebner, N. C., & Cahill, B. S. (2021). The role of analytical reasoning and source credibility on the evaluation of real and fake full-length news articles. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 6(1), 1-12

Pehlivanoglu, D., Myers, E., & Ebner, N. C. (2020). Tri-Phasic Model of Oxytocin (TRIO): A systematic conceptual review of oxytocin-related ERP Research. Biological Psychology, 154,

Horta, M., Pehlivanoglu, D., Ebner, N.C. (2020). The Role of Intranasal Oxytocin on Social Cognition: an Integrative Human Lifespan Approach. Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports, 1-18.

Pehlivanoglu, D., Duarte, A., & Verhaeghen, P. (2020). Multiple identity tracking strategies vary by age: An ERP study. Neuropsychologia, 138, 107357.

Pehlivanoglu, D., & Verhaeghen, P. (2019). Now you feel it, now you don't: Motivated attention to emotional content is modulated by age and task demands. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 1-18.