Jee Hyun Kim is an Australian behavioral neuroscientist whose work focuses on emotional learning and memory during childhood and adolescence. She is an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the '' North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is ...

, principal research fellow, and head of the Molecular Psychiatry Laboratory at the Deakin University School of Medicine, Australia Kim is an active science communicator, and has given public lectures at

TEDx TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sa ...

Melbourne,

Australian Museum The Australian Museum is a heritage-listed museum at 1 William Street, Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest museum in Australia,Design 5, 2016, p.1 and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the ...

, National Portrait Gallery, Victorian Science Week,

City of Melbourne The City of Melbourne is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central city area of Melbourne. In 2018, the city has an area of and had a population of 169,961. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. The c ...

(Melbourne Conversations), and the Wheeler Centre. She has also interviewed for ABC Radio, Radio New Zealand, SBS TV, Channel 10 (The Project), and was featured on ABC Catalyst.

Research

Kim's research has demonstrated that the acquisition and retrieval of fear memories is different across childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, and that fear memories are able to be erased early in life. Kim's research uses rodent models that closely resemble human behaviors to understand the

neurobiological Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, developme ...

basis of those behaviors. Specifically, her work investigates the role of memory and forgetting in the development and treatment of two major mental disorders across childhood and adolescence:

anxiety disorder Anxiety disorders are a cluster of mental disorders characterized by significant and uncontrollable feelings of anxiety and fear such that a person's social, occupational, and personal function are significantly impaired. Anxiety may cause phy ...

and

substance use disorder Substance use disorder (SUD) is the persistent use of drugs (including alcohol) despite substantial harm and adverse consequences as a result of their use. Substance use disorders are characterized by an array of mental/emotional, physical, and ...

. To study

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

, the Kim laboratory employs a

classical conditioning Classical conditioning (also known as Pavlovian or respondent conditioning) is a behavioral procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus (e.g. food) is paired with a previously neutral stimulus (e.g. a triangle). It also refers to the lear ...

paradigm based on the work of

Ivan Pavlov Ivan Petrovich Pavlov ( rus, Ива́н Петро́вич Па́влов, , p=ɪˈvan pʲɪˈtrovʲɪtɕ ˈpavləf, a=Ru-Ivan_Petrovich_Pavlov.ogg; 27 February 1936), was a Russian and Soviet experimental neurologist, psychologist and physio ...

known as

fear conditioning Pavlovian fear conditioning is a behavioral paradigm in which organisms learn to predict aversive events. It is a form of learning in which an aversive stimulus (e.g. an electrical shock) is associated with a particular neutral context (e.g., a ...

. Despite originating 100 years ago, this model is widely used by modern scientists to uncover the neural mechanisms of fear and anxiety. To investigate substance abuse the Kim laboratory uses an

operant conditioning Operant conditioning, also called instrumental conditioning, is a learning process where behaviors are modified through the association of stimuli with reinforcement or punishment. In it, operants—behaviors that affect one's environment—are c ...

paradigm based on the work of

B. F. Skinner Burrhus Frederic Skinner (March 20, 1904 – August 18, 1990) was an American psychologist, behaviorist, author, inventor, and social philosopher. He was a professor of psychology at Harvard University from 1958 until his retirement in 1974. C ...

known as intravenous self-administration. Kim's research especially focuses on

extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the Endling, last individual of the species, although the Functional ext ...

, a form of inhibitory learning that forms the basis of exposure-based therapies for both anxiety and addiction disorders. Kim has over 70 original publications to date, and her work has been cited in other publications over 2700 times.

Career

Kim completed her undergraduate degree at the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...

(UNSW) in 2004, graduating with the University Medal in Psychology. She completed her

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...

psychology Psychology is the science, scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immens ...

in 2008 at UNSW, during which time she published six original scientific articles. After graduating, Kim worked as a

postdoctoral research fellow A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to pu ...

at UNSW, and then the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. Kim then gained a position as a Senior Research Officer at the Florey Institute, before becoming head of the Developmental Psychobiology Laboratory at the institute.

Editorial activity

*''

Behavioural Brain Research ''Behavioural Brain Research'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Elsevier. The journal publishes articles in the field of behavioural neuroscience. Volume 1 appeared in 1980 and issues appeared 6 times per year; as submissions in ...

'', Invited Guest Editor for 2016 special issue ''Developmental Regulation of Memory in Anxiety and Addiction'' *''

Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience Frontiers Media SA is a publisher of peer-reviewed, open access, scientific journals currently active in science, technology, and medicine. It was founded in 2007 by Kamila and Henry Markram, and has since expanded to other academic fields. Fro ...

'', Review editor *'' Frontiers in Pharmacology: Translational Pharmacology'', Review editor *'' Pharmacology Research & Perspectives'', member of the

editorial board The editorial board is a group of experts, usually at a publication, who dictate the tone and direction the publication's editorial policy will take. Mass media At a newspaper, the editorial board usually consists of the editorial page editor, ...

Community service

Kim is a vocal advocate for Women in Science, and has served on the committee for the Florey Committee for Equality is Science (EqIS). Kim was acknowledged for her role as a proponent for women in science in Kate White's book, ''Building effective career paths for women in science research: a case study of an Australian science research institute''. Kim is also a board member for the International Society for Developmental Psychobiology and has been a symposium organiser and chair at several international scientific conferences. Kim is the treasurer of Biological Psychiatry Australia.

Awards

International Society for Neurochemistry The International Society for Neurochemistry (ISN) is a professional society for neurochemists and neuroscientists throughout the world. History The idea of an organization like the ISN began in the mid-1950s as scientists began to devote more att ...

(ISN) Young Scientist Lectureship Award *

American College of Neuropsychopharmacology Founded in 1961, the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) is a professional organization of leading brain and behavior scientists. The principal functions of the college are research and education. Their goals in research are to offe ...

(ACNP) Travel Award, Senior Level *Biological Psychiatry Australia, Aubrey Lewis Award 2017 * The International College of Neuropsychopharmacology (CINP), Rafaelsen Young Investigator Award 2016 *

Australian Institute of Policy and Science The Australian Institute of Policy and Science (AIPS) is an Australian non-partisan and non-profit organisation that aims to further public understanding of the public policy and science in Australia. Founded in 1932 as the Australian Institute of ...

, Victorian Tall Poppy Award 2014 * International Society for Developmental Psychobiology, Kucharski Young Investigator Award 2013 *

Australian Psychological Society The Australian Psychological Society (APS) is one of the professional associations for psychologists in Australia. The APS had more than 27,000 members in 2005, making it the largest professional body representing psychologists in Australia at t ...

, Early Career Research Award 2012 *

American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States, with over 133,000 members, including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. It ha ...

, D.G. Marquis Award for Best paper published in Behavioral Neuroscience 2012 *

, U-Committee Award for Research Excellence in Science 2010 * International Society for Developmental Psychobiology, Dissertation Award 2009 *

, Prize for Excellence in PhD thesis in Psychology 2008 * International Society for Developmental Psychobiology, Sandra G. Wiener Student Investigator Award 2007 *

, Prize for the best performance in Psychology Honours 2004 *

, University Medal in Psychology 2004

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Jee Hyun Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Australian neuroscientists Australian women neuroscientists Australian people of Korean descent 21st-century women scientists University of Michigan fellows