MEET THE LAB

DEEPTHI KAMAWAR

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR, Ph.D.

My research interests focus on a range of issues related to young children’s cognitive development. In my lab, we examine 4- to 6-year-olds’ developing ability to think about the future (future-oriented cognition), specifically focusing on their developing ability to save. We are also interested in their developing Executive Function skills (inhibition, cognitive flexibility) and how such skills contribute to other cognitive achievements. We also examine children’s ability to understand that people’s minds represent the world in particular ways (which may or may not be correct), and it is on the basis of these representations that we predict or explain behaviour (a broad area known as Theory of Mind). Other research has examined the developmental progression of a variety of representation types (e.g., symbols). Our research also examines children’s developing notion of ‘intention’ (purposeful behaviour), and how considerations of intention affect moral evaluations.

ELLEN DOUCET

Ellen is currently a PhD student and research assistant in the Children's Representational Development Lab. She has an MA in Psychology from Carleton University and a Bachelor of Science from Mount Allison University. Ellen is currently involved in all studies in the lab, but her main area of interest is children's saving performance. More specifically, she is interested in factors that

can improve saving performance, such as budgeting and experience, as well as ways that we can help young children save. Further, she is interested in the impact of cognitive skills for saving, such as numeracy skills and temporal cognition.

SOFIA MAH

Sofia is a second-year MA Psychology student and research assistant in the Children's Representational Development Lab. She completed her BA Honours in Psychology in 2023 under Dr. Vivian Lee with a primary focus on caregiver perceptions of acceptability of a cognitive behavioural therapy-based intervention for autistic children. With Dr. Deepthi Kamawar, she hopes to explore factors that influence children's future-oriented cognition and saving behaviour. Specifically, she is interested in whether having conversations with children about their extended selves in near past and near future contexts affects their saving performance. Moreover, she is also interested in exploring the interaction between extended-self conversations and temporal cognition.

BROOKE SMITH

Brooke is a second-year M.A. Psychology student and research assistant in the Children’s Representational Development Lab. She completed her B.A. Honours in Psychology in 2023 under the supervision of Dr. Deepthi Kamawar. Her M.A. thesis focuses on the influence of 4- to 6-year olds' observations of others' saving behaviour on their own saving decisions. She is also looking at whether emotions (such as happiness or sadness) attributed to saving outcomes (saving or not saving) influence saving performance.

THAADSHA SANTHIRALINGAM

Thaadsha is a second-year MA Psychology student and research assistant in the Children's Representational Development Lab. She completed her B.A. in Psychology from McGill University. She is currently involved in the Future Study and the Knowledge Across Time Study. She is passionate about how children can think and process at an early age. More specifically, she is interested about children’s moral reasoning development and their consideration of intention and outcome.

TEJU OLADIPO

Teju is a 4th-year honours Cognitive Science student concentrating in Cognition and Psychology. Teju attends lab meetings and helps with data collection. She is fascinated about how children learn and hopes to pursue a career in developmental psychology. This experience has allowed her to deepen her knowledge about the research process and apply the concepts that she has learned. She enjoys being able to collaborate with like-minded peers who are at different stages in their academic careers!