TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH
IN AFFECT AND COGNITION
Lab Director
Anna Weinberg, Ph.D.
Stony Brook University, 2014
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Canada Research Chair in Clinical Neuroscience
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
McGill University
anna.weinberg@mcgill.ca
Office: 2001 McGill College, 1407
++1 (514) 398 4672
Lab: 2001 McGill College, 1450
Graduate Students
Clara Freeman
Clara is a sixth-year PhD student, currently on internship at the VA Minneapolis Health Care System. She completed her B.A. in psychology at Cornell University. Clara is interested in how social information processing and reward relate to depression and other psychopathology across development.
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Funding:
Tomlinson Fellowship, McGill University (2018-2021)
FRQ-S Ph.D. Funding (2020-2022)
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Awards:
SPR Student Poster Award, 2019
Smadar Levin Award, Society for Research in Psychopathology, 2022
Lidia Panier
Lidia is a fourth-year PhD student in the lab. She completed her M.A. (Social Sciences: Psychology) at the University of Chicago. She is interested in the effects of stress on reward processing across depression and anxiety, as well as the unique differences between these internalizing disorders.
Funding:
Canada First Research Excellence Fund, Healthy Brains for Healthy Lives, Graduate Student Fellowship (2021-2022)
FRQ-S Ph.D. Funding (2022-2024)
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Héléna Renault
Héléna is a fourth-year PhD student in the lab. They completed their undergraduate degree (BA, Honours Psychology) at McGill and are interested in how neural responses to reward interact with various types of stress as well as how these factors relate to depression.
Funding:
Judith Mappin Fellowship, McGill University (2020, 2022)
Canada Graduate Scholarship – Canadian Institutes of Health Research (2021)
Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Doctoral Award (2023-2026)
Grace Allison
Grace is a third-year PhD student in the TRAC lab. She completed her B.A. in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. She is interested in biobehavioral correlates of reward and threat processing, social functioning, and different facets of stress exposure, as they relate to the development and maintenance of internalizing psychopathology and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors.
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Funding:
Judith Mappin Fellowship, McGill University (2021)
Canada First Research Excellence Fund, Healthy Brains for Healthy Lives, Graduate Student Fellowship (2022-2023)
FRQ-SC P.h.D Funding (2023-2027)
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Awards:
SSCP Distinguished Contribution Award at APS Student Poster Competition, 2022
APS Student Research Award, 2022
Centre for Research in Human Development (CRDH) Student Poster Award, 2023
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Corinne Sejourne (co-mentored)
Corinne is a third-year PhD student working jointly in the TRAC Lab and Behavioural Medicine Lab. She received her undergraduate degree (B.A., Honors, Human Biology) from Brown University. She is interested in developing treatment interventions to promote healthier stress responses in mothers and caregivers as measured by emotional and physiological markers.
Funding:
Tomlinson Fellowship, McGill University (2021-2023)
FRQ-SC P.h.D Funding (2023-2027)
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Awards:
Society for Affective Science, Outstanding Poster Honorable Mention, 2022
Alex Argiros
Alex is a first-year PhD student in the TRAC lab. She received her B.A. in Psychology from San Diego State University in 2020 and her M.Ed. in Clinical and Developmental Research from Vanderbilt University in 2023. She is interested in how neural responses to reward, threat, and emotional stimuli interact with social factors and how these factors relate to the development of anxiety and depression.
Zhixin (Annie) Zhou
Annie is a first-year PhD student in the lab. She completed her B.S. degree at the Ohio State University (Psychology) and M.A. degree (Clinical Psychology) at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is interested in exploring how maternal psychological distress impacts offspring’s brain development and mental health by probing the neurophysiological correlates of cognitive-affective functions.
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Funding:
Tomlinson Fellowship, McGill University (2023-2025)
Post-docs
Juhyun Park, Ph.D.
Juhyun is a postdoctoral fellow in the TRAC lab. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. She is interested in identifying individuals who are vulnerable to depression and anxiety-related disorders using multi-methods (e.g., behavioral/neural measures, clinical interviews, experience sampling method) and advanced statistical methods (e.g., multilevel modeling, mixture modeling). Juhyun is particularly interested in understanding cognitive-affective processes that confer risk for depression and anxiety across lifespan (e.g., emotion regulation, reward and threat sensitivity) and how they interact with contextual factors (e.g., trauma/stress). She will be joining the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto Scarborough as an Assistant Professor in July 2024.
Funding:
FRQ-SC Postdoctoral Fellowship (2023-2025)
UC Davis/SDSU ERP Boot Camp Scholarship (2022)
Awards:
American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Award, 2020
Association for Psychological Science Student Grant Competition, 2020
Simon Morand-Beaulieu, Ph.D.
Simon is a postdoctoral scholar in the TRAC lab. He earned his Ph.D. in neuroscience at the Université de Montréal, where he studied the brain mechanisms of cognitive-behavioral therapy for adults with Tourette syndrome. Before joining the lab, he completed a 2-year postdoctoral fellowship at the Yale Child Study Center. At Yale, Simon studied cognitive control in children with Tourette syndrome and ADHD, as well as tic control through voluntary tic suppression and behavioral therapy. Simon has recently received funding from the Tourette Association of America to begin a new project investigating the neural correlates of anger and irritability in children with Tourette syndrome using EEG. Apart from his work on Tourette syndrome and related conditions, his other interests include the study of how dyadic processes and parent-child interactions may impact child and adolescent mental health.
Funding:
CIHR Fellowship (2020-2023)
Clinical Research Training Scholarship in Tourette Syndrome, Tourette Association of America & American Brain Foundation, in partnership with the American Academy of Neurology (2022-2024)
Awards:
FRQS Étudiant-chercheur Étoile Award (2017)
Lab Managers
Connie Yun
Connie has completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology at McGill University. She is interested in exploring the relevance of cultural differences within the field of psychology. In particular, she is interested in understanding the trajectories of psychopathology in minoritized groups. Her future plans involve pursuing graduate studies in clinical psychology and she hopes to eventually become a clinical research psychologist.
Elisabeth Irvine
Elisabeth graduated with her BSc in Psychology from McGill University, and she has been enjoying her time exploring her research interests and expanding her skills with the TRAC Lab. Elisabeth is interested in the ways our social networks and communication skills impact our mental health (and vice versa) and how our understanding of these connections can be used to inform clinical treatment. Elisabeth looks forward to deepening her understanding through graduate studies and hopes to one day earn a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.
Research Assistants
Anna Walls
Anna is a fourth-year undergraduate honours psychology student at McGill University. She is mainly interested in studying how dyadic processes and parent-child attachments impact adolescent mental health and neural development. She is also interested in identifying neurophysiological markers in those with a greater risk of developing substance-use disorders. In the future, she hopes to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology.
Brigida Bono
Brigida is a fourth-year undergraduate student in Honours Psychology with a minor in sociology. She is interested in developmental psychopathology, with a particular interest in internalizing disorders. She plans to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology.
Enqi Wang
Enqi is going into the fourth year of undergraduate study at McGill University, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Neuroscience. She is currently working as a volunteer research assistant in TRAC lab. Her interests mainly revolve around psychopathology and vulnerabilities to mental health problems. She is passionate about pursuing future studies in the field of clinical psychology.
Leila Rafai
Leila is in her final year of her undergraduate degree (B.Sc., Honours Psychology) at McGill University. She is currently working on her senior honours thesis at the TRAC lab and is excited to gain hands-on experience working with EEG as well as exploring the domain of psychopathology. She is interested in pursuing graduate studies in neuropsychology.
Ryan Freedman
Ryan is in his second year of his undergraduate degree (B.Sc., Honours Psychology and Minor in Neuroscience) at McGill University. He is excited to gain experience at the TRAC lab by completing his honours thesis and volunteering as a Research Assistant. He is interested in learning more about depression, stress, and their connection to different neural responses. He is interested in pursuing medical school or graduate studies.
Martin Sellier Silva
Martin is in his final year of a Bachelor of Science with a Psychology major and a Biology minor. He is passionate about the intersection between these two fields and their possible applications to treat psychopathology and understand social behaviors. He is looking forward to pursuing research in clinical psychology.
Chaimaa El Mouslih
Chaimaa is in her final year of undergraduate studies at McGill University, completing a BA&Sc. in Honours Cognitive Science, with a focus and a minor in Psychology. She is excited to explore the intersection of psychology, psychopathology, and neuroscience. Specifically, she is interested in how individual (biological, cognitive, cultural) and environmental factors can contribute to the expression of psychopathology. She hopes to pursue research in clinical psychology to help create more appropriate and accessible mental health interventions.
Samantha Villedrouin
Samantha is currently in her second year of undergraduate study, pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in psychology and a minor in sociology and behavioural science. She is planning to pursue graduate studies with the goal of becoming a researcher in clinical psychology. Samantha is eager to gain practical experience on her fields of interest: child psychopathology and cognitive science.
Zoe Bishop
Zoe is in her final year of a Bachelor of Arts with a Psychology major and a Sociology minor. She is interested in how developmental psychopathology and sociology can intersect. Specifically, Zoe would like to examine the connection between adolescent psychopathology onset and social problems, including poverty, disparity, and discrimination. She is eager to step out of her comfort zone, expand her skill set, and gain experience working with EEG. She plans to pursue graduate studies in Child Psychology or clinical psychology.
Marc-Antoine Brosseau
Marc-Antoine is in his final year of a Bachelor of Arts (Honours Psychology and minor in French Literature). He's eager to learn about brain responses and how they relate to psychopathologies, especially personality disorders. He’s — obviously — passionate about psychology, but also about literature, philosophy, sociology, and by how these fields provide cues as to how social environments and interpersonal relationships might influence the course of mental illnesses such as personality disorders. He’s looking forward to pursuing graduate studies in clinical psychology with the goal of growing into a well rounded clinician.
Melissa Shemirani
Melissa is in the fourth year of her undergraduate program (B.Sc., Honours Psychology) at McGill University. She is interested in developmental psychopathology, specifically the relationship between individual differences in attachment style and the development and prognosis of eating disorders, depression and anxiety. Her future plans involve pursuing graduate studies in clinical psychology with the eventual goal of becoming a clinical research psychologist.
Aralia Mills
I’m a third-year undergraduate student with a major in psychology and double minor in behavioral science and sociology. My current interests lie around educational and developmental psychology. I’m particularly interested in researching the impacts of early educational experiences on lifelong trajectories. I’m interested in pursuing graduate studies in school/child psychology.
Alyssa Bensoussan
Alyssa is currently in her final year completing a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. She is passionate about the relationship between psychology and physiology, namely the ways in which stress can affect our psychopathological and physiological states and general well-being. Alyssa is eager to learn more about the biopsychosocial model and hopes to pursue graduate studies in the field of health psychology.
Niru N.
Niru is a second-year undergraduate student, currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Honours Psychology, and minors in World Cinemas and in East Asian Language and Literature. Their main interest is in learning about the neural processes involved in psychopathology. They are excited to pursue a career in research and to expand their knowledge in the fields of psychology and neuroscience.
Katherine is a second-year undergraduate student at Mcgill University in Honours Psychology and minoring in Interdisciplinary Life Sciences. She is fascinated and passionate about the behavioural sciences as a whole, but is particularly interested in studying the biological underpinnings of psychiatric disorders, the therapeutic potentials of psychedelics, the intergenerational transmission of risk, and the like. She hopes to pursue further studies and research in clinical psychology or psychiatry.
Maya Ladki
Maya is in her final year, completing a Bachelor of Arts in Honours Psychology with a minor in Communication Studies. She is interested in the interplay between social and cognitive-affective influences of development, particularly with regards to emotional dysregulation, the behaviours it may produce or influence, and the implications that these factors may have in interpersonal relationships during adolescence and emerging adulthood. In the future, she plans to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology.
Katherine Li
Yijae Kim
Yijae is a U3 psychology student minoring in German languages at McGill university. At the TRAC lab, she is excited to learn more about EEG and its diverse use within different fields in psychology this year. Her research interests involve personality and well-being, and developmental psychopathology. After graduating, Yijae hopes to continue doing interdisciplinary research in psychology.
Graduate Student Alumni
Paige Ethridge, Ph.D.: Clinical Psychologist, Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, Edmonton
Aislinn Sandre, Ph.D.: Post-doc at Columbia University, Teacher's College
Iulia Banica, Ph.D.: Clinical Psychologist, Ontario Shores Centre of Mental Health Sciences
Undergraduate Alumni
Loran Carpentier (Clinical Psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal)
Seonwoo Hong (Clinical Psychology, University of British Columbia)
Lidie Silva Andres
Anaïs Mortazavi Zadeh
Lara El-Zein
Arianna McCagg
Zeina Moussa
Mila Goulon
Mica Ostry
Sonya Akberdina
Lunaa Hao
Maya Ahia (Clinical Psychology, University of Toronto)
Joelle Schaffer (Clinical Psychology, Toronto Metropolitan University)
Jasmine Kotsiopoulus (Master of Arts in Research and Clinical Training in Psychology, Concordia University)
Ghislaine Niyonkuru (Clinical Psychology, University of Ottawa)
Talia Schroeder (lab coordinator, Dr. Sarah Racine's lab, McGill University)
Lina Badran
Helen Liu
Fiona Sewall
Chloe White (Clinical Psychology, Simon Fraser University)
Viveca Lee (research assistant, Eating Disorders Continuum, Douglas Hospital)
Alexandra MacTavish (graduate student, child clinical psychology, University of Windsor)
Kiki Brabander (graduate student, Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University)
Ella Christiaans (graduate student, Educational Psychology, McGill University)
Fauzia Saiyed (Counseling Psychology Doctoral Student at Lehigh University)
Claire Punturieri (graduate student, Clinical Psychology, University of Wisconsin)
Ariel Boyle (graduate student, Clinical Psychology, Concordia University)
Iman Lahouaoula (medical student, UBC)
Erin Matsuba (graduate student, psychology, Syracuse University)
Manlu Liu (graduate student, University of British Columbia)
Jamie Borenstein-Laurie (graduate student, Clinical Psychology, Concordia University)
Emma Stewart (graduate student, Clinical Psychology, University of Western Ontario)
Benazir Hodzic-Santor (medical student, University of Toronto)
Insub Kim (graduate student, Stanford University)
Tiana Corovic (law school, University of Toronto)
Agnessa Karapetian (PhD student in cognitive computational neuroscience, Einstein Center for Neurosciences, Berlin)
Julia Ferrone (graduate student, PsyD in School Psychology, Adelphi University)
Nicole Ledwos (graduate student, integrated program in neuroscience, McGill University)
Hazal Ozlen (project manager, Villeneuve lab, the Douglas)
Anne Baptiste (graduate student, Concordia University)
Emily Snook (medical student, University of Toronto)
Mert Kimyaci (research assistant in the Regulation, Affect and Development Lab, McGill University)
Wendy Wang
Sasha Novozhilova
Seffie Yip
David Figeuroa Perez
Jiaqi Zhao
Erica Di Caprio
Veronica Rusu
Emily Demers
Karin Cinalioglu
Charlene Osei-Afrifa
Ruby Atesoglu
Alison Yang
Sarah Bernier
Emilie Hess
Blair Lavery
Dila Bilal
Catherine Labasi-Sammartino
Christine Koppenaal
​Samantha Scholes
Sarah Lefebvre
Margot Kelly-Hedrick
Christine Koppenaal
Charles LaPierre
Shannon Dawe
Sarah Sieur
Kelly Cool
Jennifer Burns
Shona Mistry
Sasha Topilova
Zainab Yahya
Bettina Trabelsi
Rachel Shepherd
Katie Mound
Ellie Basra
Oliver Huang
Friends &
Collaborators
Autumn Kujawa, Vanderbilt University
Melanie Dirks, McGill University
Anja Riesel, University Hamburg
Sarah Racine, McGill University
Alexis May, Wesleyan University
Greg Hajcak, Florida State University
Roman Kotov, Stony Brook University
Stewart Shankman, Northwestern University
E. David Klonsky, University of British Columbia
Christopher Patrick, Florida State University
Norbert Kathmann, Humboldt University
Dan Foti, Purdue University
Signy Sheldon, McGill University