Priscila M. Cacola PhD

Dr. Priscila Caçola is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and the Director of the Developmental Motor Cognition Lab at the University of Texas at Arlington. She holds a B.S. and M.S. in Kinesiology from the Federal University of Parana and a Ph.D. in Motor Neuroscience from Texas A&M University. Her research focuses on the links between cognitive and motor behavior across the lifespan, with particular emphasis on how motor and space representations develop and how problems associated with those representations cause motor skill difficulties in vulnerable populations (e.g., children with low motor ability and the elderly). She is also particularly interested in how the environment contributes to motor skill development in infants. Her work has significant practical implications for the development of screening, diagnostic, and intervention protocols associated with motor skills and vulnerable populations. In 2013, she was honored with the Lolas E. Halverson Motor Development Young Investigator Award, a distinction given in recognition of outstanding contributions to her research in motor development and learning, and in 2017, she received the Early Career Distinguished Scholar Award from NASPSPA.