Research Chairs and Awards

Excellence in Research Award Winners

• James Danckert (2025)
• Ori Friedman (2023)
• Katherine White (2022)
• Stephanie Denison (2021)
• Derek Besner (2017)
• Geoffrey Fong (2016)
• Joanne Wood (2015)

Sara Hart, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Developmental Science

Research involves:

Examining the role of an individual’s genetic variants in predicting school achievement and intervention response and; understanding how scientists do science, with a particular interest in supporting rigorous and reproducible educational and developmental science. 

Research relevance:

This research: will help understand the direct role of environments around children, controlling for genetic predispositions. and; support the data storage and data access needs of scientists working in fields of developmental science related to education

Kate Ratliff, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Social Psychology

Research involves:

Attitudes and social cognition and generally seeks to understand how attitudes and stereotypes form and how they influence judgements and behavior.

Research relevance:

This research includes looking at the role of public and institutional policy in shaping how people think and feel about their own and others’ social groups. Hoping to (1) develop a theoretical model that accounts for when, why, and how laws and policies affect intergroup attitudes and stereotypes, and (2) understand the role of migration and residential mobility in shaping individual and regional intergroup attitudes and stereotypes.

Dillon Browne, Canada Research Chair in Child and Family Clinical Psychology

Research involves:

Understanding the way in which stressful social contexts influence developmental health by altering the nature of family relationships.

Research relevance:

This research includes the development, evaluation, and dissemination of evidence-based therapeutic and community services for children, youth, and families

James Danckert, Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience

Roxane Itier, Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroimaging and Neurodevelopmental Disorders

David Moscovitch, Canada Research Chair in Mental Health Research

Evan Risko, Canada Research Chair in Embodied and Embedded Cognition             

Abigail Scholer, Canada Research Chair in Motivated Social Cognition