Yadurshana Sivashankar
Yadurshana is a 4th-year PhD candidate in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Waterloo, working under the supervision of Dr. Myra Fernandes. Her research examines the relative contribution of decision-making strategies and motor control to spatial memory across various age groups, using innovative methods like Virtual Reality (VR) and driving simulators. To this end, her research makes use of simulated environments that mimic real world cities around the world.
Yadu’s experience extends beyond her doctoral research. As a Visiting Research Scientist at KITE (Toronto Rehabilitation Institute; UHN) and INRIA in Bordeaux, France, she collaborated with experts in cognitive science, machine learning, and simulation technologies. At KITE, she studied age-related changes in navigation abilities with Dr. Jennifer Campos. At INRIA, she designed experiments exploring how decision-making strategies, roadmaps, and landmarks impact route memory. Working with Dr. Jason Ozubko at SUNY-Geneseo, she combined VR and fMRI to study the effects of guided navigation on spatial memory and neural activation patterns.
Yadu earned the Certificate in University Teaching, and has taught courses at Wilfrid Laurier University (Human Neuropsychology), receiving high student evaluations. She actively serves as a peer reviewer for multiple academic journals and as a committee member for conference societies, assisting with event organization. Yadu has received several competitive awards and recognitions at the provincial, national, and the international level. These include the NSERC CGS-D, Ontario Graduate Scholarship, WiCS-Canada Research Seed Grant, CPA Student Research Grant, and the INRIA and UW Collaboration grant. She has presented her work at renowned conferences, including the INAV Research Symposium, Cognitive Neuroscience Society, International Neuropsychological Society, and the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour, and Cognitive Science, among others.
Looking forward, she is interested in pursuing her postdoctoral studies.
Laura Colucci
Laura is a 4th year Ph.D. student in the Clinical Psychology program, working under the supervision of Dr. Dillon Browne. As part of the FamilyPsycle Lab, she is passionate about researching family dynamics at different levels of analysis.
With expertise in the family stress model and family systems theory, Laura’s SSHRC-funded dissertation research is exploring longitudinal outcomes following parent-focused Emotion-Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) - an attachment-based intervention that can effectively fortify family relationships and support children’s mental health recovery. Consistent with the theoretical pillars of family psychology and developmental science, Laura’s research uses advanced statistical methods like multilevel modelling in order to investigate the bidirectional nature of family relationships, across multiple layers of the family system.
As a testament to the quality of her research skills, Laura has frequently published and presented her work at local, national, and international conferences, across the domains of family stress, screen-time assessment, coping with adversity, childhood trauma, psychosis, and parent well-being during COVID-19. She has also thrived within academic leadership roles, including invited peer review, community education, and mentorship of junior students.
Laura has been actively involved in research initiatives for the past 10 years and has completed research internships across the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, The Hospital for Sick Children, and Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. Looking ahead to this fall, Laura is very excited to continue her training as a scientist-practitioner, as she begins her predoctoral residency at BC Children’s Hospital.
Stay up to date with Laura’s research on Google Scholar.
Learn more about the exciting projects happening in the FamilyPsycle Lab.