My research in the Infant Cognition Group lab is primarily focused on the development of prosocial behaviour (e.g., helping, sharing, comforting, cooperating, etc.) in preschool children. I am also interested in the ways in which shyness may impede young children from acting prosocially toward others, particularly individuals who are unfamiliar to them. The topic of the comprehensive exam that I will be writing this year has taken root from this interest: I will be examining social anxiety (along a continuum from shyness to social anxiety disorder/phobia) from a combined evolutionary and developmental psychology perspective.
I have worked as a teaching assistant at both Queen’s and the University of Winnipeg for courses in Research Methods/Statistics, Intro to Developmental Psychology, Atypical Development, and Cognitive and Language Development. I also volunteer as a student mentor through the Canadian Psychological Association and am currently helping a second-year psychology student understand the process of applying to graduate school and organize extra curricular activities to strengthen their application. I’m sure that the mentoring and teaching experiences I’ve had so far will translate well into helping students in QChaT – I look forward to talking with you!