Our Team

Dr. Jennifer Khoury – Lab Director

In 2021, Dr. Khoury began her position as an Assistant Professor and Tier II Canada Research Chair in Interdisciplinary Studies in Neuroscience, in the Department of Psychology at Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU). She also holds an adjunct appointment in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Dalhousie University.

Dr. Khoury’s research program adopts an interdisciplinary and multi-method approach to understand how early life stress impacts the brain and behaviour of parents and children. She is particularly interested in studying the impact of neurobiological stress and emotion regulation on child development, including child mental health outcomes, beginning in pregnancy and spanning to later childhood.

Dr. Khoury’s research program is funded by the Canada Research Chairs Program (CRCP), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), Research Nova Scotia (RNS), the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), and MSVU internal grants.

Email: Jennifer.khoury@msvu.ca

MSVU Faculty Profile

Dr. Kiera O’Neil - Lab Manager & Knowledge Translation Coordinator

Kiera (she/her) has a background in cognitive neuroscience, with a focus on how experience shapes the neural systems underlying language and memory. Her recent work has focused on how early blindness impacts the language and working memory networks in the brain, the psychosocial factors that affect remote-work productivity during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the behavioural and brain correlates of mind-wandering during technology use. She is particularly interested in knowledge dissemination and hopes to make science accessible to the public and to policy-makers.

Email: kiera.oneil2@msvu.ca

Shireen Gill- Research Coordinator

Shireen holds a Bachelor of Medical Sciences from Western University and a Master of Science in Global Health from McMaster University. In the lab, she coordinates the COVID-19 study, Emotional Regulation study, and Adolescent Stress study. Her interest in developmental research stems from its critical impact on lifelong physical and mental health, with the potential to inform future treatments and improve quality of life. Outside of work, she’s an avid BTS fan (ARMY) and loves to workout and read!

Graduate Students

Lauren Giles-PhD Student & Research Coordinator

Lauren is a PhD student in the Experimental Psychology program at Dalhousie University. Her dissertation projects aim to explore resilience-related predictors of postpartum depression. Lauren’s primary role at the DPRC is the coordination of the Maternal Childhood Experiences and Perinatal Health study.

Mackenna Pattison-MA/PhD Student

Mackenna is a first year clinical psychology MA/PhD student at Dalhousie University under the supervision of Dr. Jennifer Khoury and Dr. Tara Perrot. She recently completed her Honours BA in psychology at the University of Ottawa. In her spare time, Mackenna enjoys reading, spending time outside, and doing yoga! Mackenna is really looking forward to getting started as a new grad student in the lab this year and learning more about developmental research!

Esther Puiras- Graduate Student

Esther recently completed her MSc in Experimental Psychology at Dalhousie University, co-supervised by Dr. Jennifer Khoury and Dr. Tara Perrot. She is currently a research coordinator in the early psychosis unit at the NSHA, where she helps facilitate projects aimed at improving patient quality of life. In her free time, Esther enjoys working out, listening to podcasts, and desperately learning to cook.

Rahne Forbes-Undergraduate Honours Student & Research Assistant

Rahne a 4th year honours student at Dalhousie supervised by Dr. Khoury, and a research assistant at the DPRC. Her thesis examines prenatal and postpartum maternal stress and its impact on child sleep as well as marital conflict as a potential moderator of this relationship. She also processes saliva and hair samples for cortisol in the wet lab and facilitates RNS and ER sessions.

Research Assistants

Emma Becker-Research Assistant

Emma will begin the Master of Arts program in School Psychology at MSVU in September 2023. She completed her BSc Psychology (Honours) with a minor in Neuroscience at MSVU in 2022 under the supervision of Dr. Khoury. Emma previously earned a BA in English from Acadia University ('10) as well as a BEd Elementary from MSVU ('13).

Jayd Adams-Research Assistant

Jayd is currently working full time as a Research Assistant in the department of Community Health & Epidemiology at Dalhousie University. With a range of research interests in global, women's, and mental health, she is also a volunteer Research Assistant here at the DPRC. Jayd completed her Bachelor of Science (Honours in Biology) at the University of British Columbia in 2022. In her free time, she likes to read, crochet, and spend time with friends.

Bronwyn Inness-Research Assistant

Bronwyn is a first year MSc Psychiatry Research student at Dalhousie University. She completed her BSc Honours in Psychology at Mount Allison University. Bronwyn volunteers in the DPRC lab, working mainly on the Maternal Childhood Experiences and Perinatal Health study. She loves working with kids and is interested in learning about development. At Dalhousie, Bronwyn is investigating the effects of parental smartphone use on childhood socioemotional wellbeing.

Mobina Ali-Research Assistant

Mobina recently graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Dalhousie University, where she majored in psychology and minored in biology. During her studies, she conducted an independent research project on second language acquisition at the Neurocognitive Imaging Lab. This summer, she joined the DPRC as a research assistant, contributing to the RNS study, which investigates the impact of maternal childhood experiences on perinatal biopsychosocial risk and resilience, as well as the Emotion Regulation study. In her free time, she enjoys painting, pottery, exploring new cafes, and bike rides with friends.

Emma Myra-Research Assistant

Emma is a 4th year BSc Psychology student minoring in applied statistics and neuroscience at Mount Saint Vincent University. Emma is applying to complete her honours thesis in 2025-2026. Emma is involved in student life on campus, also marking for statistics and tutoring introductory psychology courses. In her free time, Emma enjoys spending time with her dogs and family.

Laura Eisner-Research Assistant

Laura completed her BSc Psychology (Honours) with a minor in Biology at Dalhousie University in 2023. She currently works as a research assistant with Nova Scotia Health Authority, and as a Child and Youth Care Worker with a non-profit organization supporting at-risk youth. Laura has been supporting DPRC in several of their projects since Spring 2024 in her free time. She plans to pursue graduate studies in Psychology to continue exploring her research interest of understanding how early life stressors impact cognitive and socioemotional development.

Olivia Patterson-Research Assistant

Olivia is an honours student at Mount Saint Vincent University supervised by Dr. Daniel Séguin and a research assistant at the DPRC. Her thesis is examining whether experiences of parentification and aspects of personality such as conscientiousness can predict resilience in adulthood. Her research interests include clinical psychology, the impact of early life experiences on development, intergenerational trauma, addiction and risk-taking behaviours, and typical versus atypical development. In her spare time, Olivia enjoys painting, spending time outdoors, and helping others in need (whether human or animal)!

Gwenyth Puddester-Undergraduate Honours Student & Research Assistant

Gwenyth is an honours student at Dalhousie University with a BA in Psychology. She is supervised by Dr. Jennifer Khoury and is completing her thesis work on emotion regulation in children at the DPRC. Her project examines the impact of caregivers' responses to their children's emotional displays on their children's abilities to regulate their emotions. Outside of the lab, Gwenyth enjoys her position as an early childhood educator assistant, and spending time with her cats Flora and Flea!

Ethan Kelloway-Research Assistant

Ethan is a third-year undergraduate at Mount Saint Vincent University. He is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Psychology and minoring in Family Studies. Ethan is hoping to pursue a master's in clinical psychology in which he can focus his work with family and children at a community-based level. In his spare time, Ethan loves to go for walks and explore nature, as well as play and listen to music.

Jansyn Fraser-Research Assistant

Jansyn is a 4th year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Sociology at Mount Saint Vincent University. Jansyn plans to complete her honours certificate after graduation. Jansyn is interested in developmental psychology and hopes to work with children one day. In her free time Jansyn enjoys reading, writing, and film.

Jessica Peterson-Research Assistant

Jessica graduated from Dalhousie in the spring of 2024 with a BSc Psychology (Honours). She currently works as a Lab Manager and Research Assistant at the Dalhousie Substance Use Laboratory and as a Mental Health Support Worker with a private organization. While the majority of her research experience has focused on experimental substance use (e.g., alcohol, cannabis, and nicotine), she has recently gained an interest in Developmental Origins of Health and Disease research after learning about the lifelong impacts of early-life stressors. Jessica plans to pursue graduate studies in psychology with the goal of contributing to both clinical and research advancements in the field. Outside of her academic and professional endeavours, she enjoys spending time with her loved ones, exploring the outdoors, and sharing meals together.

Lab Alumni