sam

                                                        Like chisel strokes, every interaction shapes our psychophysiology:
                                                                                               we are collaborative works of art and artists.

Samantha De Leon Sautu is a argentenian born, panamanian raised MD, currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Human Development in the Life History Lab in Cornell University, under Dr. Marlen Gonzalez.


sam envisions health and wellbeing as a collective construction on the canvas of our minds and bodies. From perceiving others as a resource, to signaling for connection, to benefitting from the proximity of safe conspecifics, she focuses on the autonomic component of self and social regulation.


Her research seeks to understand if the effects of chronic stress are buffered by yielding to social presence as a bioenergetic strategy (González, 2021), and if there is heterogeneity in the distribution of these benefits accross groups. In her work, regulation is conceived as the psychophysiological processes that -callibrated to a particular ecology-  enable goal-directed behavior across changing circumstances, as well as to the processes that maintain homeostasis in an organism (Thayer et al., 2009).


During her career, sam has centered around communication and community efforts, creating educational material for students and the general public, leading local and international advocacy efforts for public and global health, and facilitating workshops and mentoring peers. sam wishes we talked about social relationships as our primary health determinant, as much as we talk about diet and exercise. Ultimately, she seeks to bridge spaces between clinicians, researchers, community, and decision makers around the science of human ecology. 


During her time outside the lab you’ll find her consuming excessive music and cat cuddles.