Our People

Professor
Canada Excellence Research Chair in Developmental Science
Department of Psychology
University of Waterloo, Canada

Podcast: Within and Between

I am an interdisciplinary researcher who happens to find herself in a developmental psychology area. My research efforts integrate theories and methods from developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, education, and behavioral genetics. Broadly, my substantive research relates to understanding how and why people differ in their cognitive development, particularly focused on reading and math development. My work is highlighted by the use of advanced methodological techniques and open science.

Most of my work to date has focused on using twin methods to understand the "nature" and "nurture" of child development. I also spend a lot of time trying to understand the direct role of environments around children, controlling for genetic predispositions. I currently have an NIH grant to create a national twin project, NatPAT, to examine the genetic and environmental influences on the co-development of reading and math skills through elementary school. I also have grant to look at the impacts of COVID-19 on those twins reading and math development. I am currently the PI of the Learning Disabilities Collaborative, focused on using translational science to get what we know about identifying learning disabilities into the hands of teachers, administrators, parents, and learning disabled individuals.

I also work in the field of meta-science, understanding how scientists do science, with a particular interest in supporting rigorous and reproducible educational and developmental science. I currently have an NIH grant to build a data repository, LDbase, to support the data storage and data access needs of scientists working in the field of learning disabilities. 

Beyond my research, I am passionate about training, dissemination of research, and advocating for women and otherwise minoritized individuals in science. For many years I was the PI of the Florida Learning Disabilities Research Center Engagement Core, with a mission to provide specialized training opportunities to students and postdocs, and disseminate our research to our community.  I am the Co-Director of FIREFLIES, an IES funded predoctoral training grant focused on reading research. I am a co-founder and current Past President of POWER, an association with the mission to connect, support, and advocate for women conducting research in the fields of education and child development.  

Outside of work you will probably see me running around town or at a local restaurant.  

Postdoctoral Scholar

In March 2025, I completed my PhD at the University of Oxford as part of the ReadOxford lab, under the supervision of Professors Kate Nation (Experimental Psychology) and Victoria Murphy (Education). Prior to this, I worked in The Centre for Advanced Research in Experimental and Applied Linguistics (ARiEAL), and I was a member of the Reading Lab at McMaster University, where my M.Sc. thesis was supervised by Professor Victor Kuperman.

My research interests include print exposure (reading experience), second language acquisition, psychometrics, reading comprehension, and vocabulary knowledge. In particular, my PhD research focused on the language of books, as well as formulaic or functional language like connectives (nevertheless, indeed, as long as, provided that, etc.), collocations (words that go together like "dim view", "torrential downpour", etc.), and idioms ("kick the bucket", "let the cat out of the bag", etc.) I think these are particularly fascinating because they are often acquired through implicit learning simply by engaging with language, and I believe they reinforce usage-based accounts of language acquisition.

Postdoctoral Scholar

Dr. Nathan T.T. Lau is a researcher specializing in developmental and educational psychology, with a primary focus on mathematical learning and math anxiety. His work investigates the cognitive, affective, and environmental factors that shape mathematical performance, with an emphasis on understanding the development and impact of math anxiety across diverse educational contexts.

A key aspect of Dr. Lau’s research is examining the individual and contextual influences on math learning, particularly how classroom environments and socio-cultural factors shape students' experiences with mathematics. His work integrates cross-cultural and longitudinal perspectives to understand how math anxiety develops and impacts learning over time. He is particularly interested in how math anxiety leads to math avoidance, a behavioral consequence that can further hinder skill development and academic achievement. By identifying the mechanisms underlying this relationship, his research aims to inform interventions that foster more positive engagement with mathematics.

Beyond his substantive research interests, Dr. Lau is also deeply engaged in quantitative research methods, particularly structural equation modeling (SEM). He applies advanced statistical techniques to model complex relationships between cognitive, emotional, and educational variables, enhancing the precision and rigor of psychological research in math education.

Dr. Lau’s research has been published in leading journals in educational psychology and cognitive science. He actively collaborates with international scholars to develop evidence-based strategies for reducing math anxiety, mitigating math avoidance, and improving math education through methodological innovation and applied research.

Project Manager

Rebecca (B.A.) is a full-time Project Manager who is immensely enjoying the privilege of working with Dr. Hart and providing operational and administrative support to her research projects. Outside of her 9-5, Rebecca is heavily involved in the performing arts such as music and improvisational comedy!

4th year Ph.D. student
IES FIREFLIES Fellow

​I am a fourth year Developmental Psychology student, as well as a FIREFLIES fellow. I am interested in the role of social emotional factors in the academic achievement of students with learning disabilities. I am particularly interested in motivation and self-concept. Through my research I hope to better our understanding and support of those with learning disabilities. In my free time I enjoy hiking and getting out into nature. 

3rd year Ph.D. student
IES FIREFLIES Fellow
 
Stephanie Estrera is a third year Developmental Psychology student interested in reading development, behavioral genetics, and open science. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2019 with a B.A. in Psychology and minor in Computer Science, and worked on various community-based literacy projects in the Philippines as a Primary Education Teacher with the Peace Corps. Outside of her love of science, Stephanie also adores practicing yoga, knitting, hiking, baking, and anything that puts her in the ocean.

Postdoctoral Scholar

My research focuses on understanding and enhancing students' reading comprehension and higher-order thinking skills, such as evidence-based reasoning, which are critical for academic success and informed decision-making. I use interdisciplinary methods, including quantitative and qualitative approaches, to explore how individual and contextual factors impact these cognitive skills. In my free time, I enjoy exploring various forms of art and engaging in hands-on creative projects.

Graduate Research Assistant

Madison is a graduate research assistant and former project coordinator in the IDCD lab. She is currently working towards getting her master's degree in clinical mental health counseling and is interested in environmental influences on children's behavioral and emotional development. In her free time, Madison enjoys reading, crocheting, and exercising.

NatPAT Project Coordinator

Vir is the Project Coordinator of NatPAT. He graduated from FSU in May of 2023 with his BS in Psychology. His research interests include cognitive control, behavioral genetics, and translational psychiatry. Outside of science, he enjoys cooking and playing pickleball.

Research Faculty
Co-director of the IDCD Lab

Dr. Little defended her dissertation August 2016, and is currently a research faculty member at the Florida Center for Reading Research. Dr. Little's research interests are in behavioral genetics, technology as it pertains to assessment, classroom instruction and achievement, and all things developmental. 

Ashlyn is the IDCd Lab Coordinator. She graduated from FSU in 2018 with her B.S. in sociology/psychology, and in 2021 with her MA in Learning and Cognition. Her research interests include how workplace power dynamics influence productivity and how socioeconomic status affects education and mental health. In her free time, she enjoys FSU sports, interior design, and going to the movies. 

Veronica was a Postdoctoral Scholar with Dr. Hart from 2021-2023. She is current a researcher at the University of Virginia. 

Tasha was a Provost Postdoctoral Fellow with Dr. Hart from 2019-2021. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois in Cognitive Psychology!

Willa was a Dean's Postdoctoral Scholar with Dr. Hart and our close colleague, Dr. Chris Schatschneider, on the LDbase project from 2019-2021. She is currently an Assistant Professor at Utah State University in Special Education! 
 

Florina was a postdoc with Dr. Hart and our close colleague, Dr. Jeanette Taylor, from Fall 2015-Fall 2017. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the Texas A&M University in Special Education!  Check out her faculty website here

Dr. Norris defended her dissertation in March 2024, and is currently working for FSU in the Office of Research Development. She works to support STEM faculty with grant opportunities.

Dr. Shero defended his dissertation June 2023, and is currently a postdoctoral scholar at Vanderbilt University.

Dr. Daucourt defended her dissertation August 2022, and is currently a postdoctoral scholar at Yale University

Dr. Haughbrook defended her dissertation April 2020, and is currently a n ssistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Florida State University. 

As a graduate student, Dr. Haughbrook was a McKnight Fellow

Connie was a graduate student Research Assistant in the IDCd lab for three years, before moving on to the Developmental Psychology Ph.D. program at FSU! She's now an Assistant Professor at Texas A&M!

Kimberly was the first project coordinator for NatPAT. She graduated from FSU in 2016 with her B.S. in psychology, and is currently pursuing her PhD in clinical psychology at Syracuse.