Current Graduate Students

[Currently on parental leave] I am a fifth-year doctoral candidate in the clinical psychology program at McGill. I am co-supervised by Dr. Dirks in the CASC Lab and Dr. Frank Elgar with the Social Inequalities in Child Health Research Group. My research interests centre around social inequalities and determinants of health, specifically how the experience of food insecurity impacts adolescents' mental health. My interest in this area stems from several years of working with at-risk youth and their families in community-based programs, as well my undergraduate studies in interdisciplinary health sciences. I hope to employ a wide range of research methods, including epidemiological analysis of large international data sets as well as community-level studies. I also care very deeply about mobilizing research findings into actionable policies to effect change.

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Allison MacNeil

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John Cyfko

I am a fourth-year doctoral candidate in McGill’s clinical psychology program. I’m interested in the impact of sibling and friend relationships on day-to-day well-being. My current research project explores whether an adolescent’s interactions with their siblings and best friend is associated with their mood both the same and the next day. I am also interested in the interactive effects of experiences with best friends and siblings; for example, on days with less best friend support, more sibling support on that same day may protect against potential negative consequences. My clinical interests are broad, but lean towards adolescents and adults with severe challenges, such as complex PTSD, major depression, and psychosis. Currently, I am completing a practicum at the Teenage Health Unit of the Jewish General Hospital’s Herzl Family Practice Centre.

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Ally Zikic

I am a fourth-year doctoral candidate in the experimental psychology program. Broadly, I am interested in understanding affective social competence in the friendships of adolescents and young adults.  In my research, I aim to understand the concept of empathic accuracy – individuals’ ability to accurately infer others’ emotions. Thus far, most empathic accuracy research has focused primarily on the role of the individual who is responsible for reading and understanding their friend’s emotions. My work aims to draw attention to the role of the individual who is expressing and communicating their own emotions to their friend. More specifically, I am interested in examining the role of expressive accuracy – individuals’ ability to accurately express their emotions. Taken together, my work aims to shed light on the importance of the roles of both friends in conversations that involve affective communication. I am also interested in examining age-related differences in these skills from adolescence to young adulthood. In addition to my main line of research, I have conducted some work examining linguistic elements that are associated with perceptions of support during supportive interactions. I am also working on a theoretical review discussing the social cognitions involved in navigating important tasks of friendship, including instrumental and emotional support.

Katya Santucci

I am a third-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program at McGill University. Broadly speaking, I have a strong interest in interpersonal and developmental research. Currently, my research examines predictors of real-life friendship dissolution in young adulthood (ages 18-25). More specifically, I am interested in looking at the role that implicit friendship beliefs (i.e., destiny and growth beliefs) and friendship quality play in shaping friendship outcomes. I am also interested in using our research findings to develop and inform interventions that aim to help young adults maintain and strengthen their friendships. Clinically, I am interested in the treatment of internalizing disorders in both youth and young adults. I am currently doing a practicum at the MUHC Mood and Anxiety Disorders Program.

Anik Setti

I am a first-year student in McGill's clinical psychology program. Broadly speaking, I am interested in how youth regulate their emotions, either with or without help, and how greater skill at regulating emotions can protect against stressors in their environment. In my current research, I am exploring how emotion regulation moderates the daily associations between experiences of peer victimization and mood. Clinically, I am interested in family therapy and preventative interventions that seek to promote social competence.

Nour Haddad

I am a first-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program at McGill University. My doctoral research will broadly focus on the impact of prosocial treatment by peers on social and emotional adjustment in adolescence. More specifically, I am currently interested in the potential moderating role of perceived intention on the complex association between daily prosocial treatment and adolescents’ affect following different types of prosocial events. My clinical interests are broad, but I’m particularly interested in the treatment of internalizing disorders, and I am especially passionate about youth suicide prevention and intervention. 

Alumni

Post-Doctoral Fellows

Doctoral Students

Drs. Morningstar, Cuttini, Kirmayer, and Dirks

Drs. Morningstar, Cuttini, Kirmayer, and Dirks

 

Dr. Erin Macdonald

 Undergraduate Students

Carla Castillo

Skylar Armstrong

Katya Santucci

Melissa Vitagliano

Jessica Cohen

Angela Brett

Jessica Burdo

Thyna Catamaran

Emily Todorov

Kaitlyn Axelrod

Lara Feldman

Olivia Petric

Shannen Ciricillo

Vanessa Scarapicchia

Todd Chan

Julia Boggia

Gillian McGovern

Leandra Desjardins

Ariane Desmarais

Marilyn Ahun

Finn Brennan-Kipp

Ariane Desmarais

Marlee Brownstein

Meagan Forest-Dionne

Julia Aboud

Sydney Turk

Sally Cuthbertson

Jaymee Fowler

Chloe Levesque

Jingfei Wang

Maria Leis

Jean-Philippe Gagne

Saskia Ferrar

Verity Le

Erinn Acland

Katrina Kairys

Nicholas Ostapchuk

Kimberly Dossett

Elizabeth Shum

Alyssa Wiseman

Emma Malcomber

Chaitali Desai

Katerina Giannoumis

Laura Bensimon

Jack Mangini

Emma Ponath

Stephanie Rajabi

Nathalie Cooke

Natalie Klein

Charlotte Ebsary

Christina Robillaird

Irene Giannis

Serena Romanelli

Maria Alcaraz

Catherine Archambault

Jade Pelletier Brochu

Addison Mott

Shiming Huang

Joshua Jackson

Megan Alton

Laura Bellhouse

Ciara Briscoe

Kathleen Charles

Bailey Bird

Ella Vezina

Fiona Mant