Principal Investigator
Holly Recchia obtained her PhD in Psychology at Concordia University. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Utah, she is now an Associate Professor in the Department of Education (Early Childhood and Elementary Education/Child Studies). Holly loves dancing with her kids, curling up with a good book, and long dinners with friends.
Doctoral Students
Malene Bodington (co-supervised by Harriet Petrakos)
Malene completed a Master of Social Science from Lund University in Sweden in 2003 and, after arriving in Canada, completed an M.A. in Sociology from Concordia in 2010. In her Master’s thesis, under the supervision of Dr. Jean-Philippe Warren and Dr. Sylvia Kairouz, she explored in-group and out-group dynamics, intolerance, and social exclusion in the context of immigration and diversity in Denmark and Canada. Since completing her degree in 2010, she has worked on research projects surrounding access to education at Concordia’s Student Parents Centre and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Malene is a strong proponent of mixed methods research and fascinated by questions surrounding methodological choices in the social sciences. Her research interests include peer relations and peer conflict; inclusion and exclusion; diversity; bullying and anti-bullying programs; resilience; and coping strategies. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, cooking a good meal and sharing it. Her downtime usually involves a good book, crocheting, logic puzzles, or strategy games. She also enjoys getting outside for a long walk, bicycle ride, or run.
Alyssa Scirocco
Alyssa completed a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from McGill University in 2012 and an M.A in Child Studies from Concordia University in 2014 under the supervision of Dr. Holly Recchia. Her Master’s thesis investigated the particular moral socialization strategies mothers employ in conversations about their young children’s perpetration of harm towards their siblings and friends. Her research interests center on how interactions with parents contribute to children’s moral development but she is also interested in sibling, peer and family relationships across different contexts (e.g., peer provocation, mother-child conversations about harm, multi-party conflict) and their associations to children’s socio-emotional and moral development. Aside from research, she greatly enjoys traveling, cooking, dancing and hiking.
Nasim Tavassoli
Before coming to Concordia, Nasim studied clinical psychology at Tehran University. She is interested in prosociality in early childhood. Her MA thesis focuses on different types of prosociality in sibling interactions (e.g., helping, sharing, comforting). She likes to spend her spare time reading books, cooking, and taking photographs.
Christine graduated from California State University, Stanislaus in 2017 with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a Developmental Concentration. She is currently completing her MA at Concordia University with Dr. Holly Recchia. Her research focuses on sibling relationships and how their relationship quality is displayed in their daily interactions. Christine greatly enjoys spending time with her family (she is very close to her siblings!), baking (and sharing the end results), and playing with her black lab mix Ruby.
Master’s Students
Prior to starting as a Child Studies masters student at Concordia University, Nazila attended McGill University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, with a minor in Behavioral Science and Sociology. Her academic and research interests lie in the prosocial development and behaviours of children, specifically studying parent-child conversations about prosocial events. Outside of school and work, Nazila enjoys trying new recipes, coffee, reading, and spending time with her close friends.
Lab Coordinator
Gabrielle is completing the last year of her Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Concordia University. In addition to being a research assistant and the lab coordinator for the RAD lab, she is working on her Honours thesis under Dr. Recchia’s supervision. Gabrielle’s work focuses on parent socialization goals in the context of prosocial behaviours. Specifically, she aims to determine whether parents of children and adolescents promote other- or self-oriented lessons in different prosocial situations. Her research interests centre on how parent-child and sibling relationships affect children’s social-cognitive development. In her spare time, Gabrielle enjoys knitting, reading, baking bread, and spending time with friends and family.
Research Assistants
Ximena Melara Benitez
Aliyah Mahon
Kayla Guidon
Alessia Fratolillo
Laura Amodeo
Jasmine Manan
Zoe Adler
Amanda Bonin
Vilma Escorcia
Lab Alumni
Cristina Casola – Completing an MA in Counselling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, QC.
Shirline Vecchiarelli – completing an undergraduate degree in Psychology.
Melina Babin-Molina – Working in Human Resources in Montreal after completing her MA at the HEC.
Fina Murphy-Gelderman – Completing an MA in Child Studies at Concordia University in Montreal, QC.
Monique Riedel – Completing an MA in Counselling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, QC.
Daysi Zentner – Compleing a PhD in Counselling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, QC.
Olivia Faulconbridge – Completing a PhD in School and Applied Psychology at Western University in London, ON.
Ma-ab Witwit – Working at the KipMcGrath Educaation Centre in Kuwait.
Brian Florez – Completing a Master’s degree in organizational psychology at University of Valencia.
Amandeep Rajput – Working as an elementary school teacher in the UK.
Stephanie Peccia – Working as an advisor at the Access Centre for Students with Disabilities at Concordia and completing her PhD in Education at Concordia University.
Sarah Leddin – After graduating from a Master’s degree in Education at the University of Ottawa, now working as an autism therapist/educator for Emerging Minds.
Matteo Peretti – Recently completed a Master’s degree in Family Medicine at McGill University.
Gifty Asare – Completing a Master’s degree in Psychiatry at McGill University.
Heather Franz – Recently completed a Master’s degree in occupational therapy at UBC.
Cassandra Monette –Coordinating a participatory action research project examining resilience in children exposed to bullying; supervising students in Gulu, Uganda, as part of the Concordia Volunteer Abroad Program.
Vanesa Sarmiento –Working in Human Resources in Bogota, Colombia.
Monica Crosetta
Melissa Lazo
Luis Carlos Consuegra
Eliza Latein – Completing a graduate psychotherapy program in Germany.
Nina Geringhoff
Chanel West
Julia Adams-Whittaker
Amanda Mangione – Working in Human Resources in Montreal, QC.
Stephanie Wells
Mawuena Badasu
Angelica Restrepo
Alexandra Singer
Mel Commisso – Completing an MA in Counselling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, QC.
Anna Sainte-Marie – Completing a Master’s degree in primary and pre-school education
Julie Guindon – Completing an MSc in Psychiatry at McGill University in Montreal, QC.
Lab Holiday party, December 2018
Congratulations to our graduates!
Hanging out with some friends from the Bukowski and Santo Labs at SRA, 2016
A sunny day at JPS, Chicago, 2016
Holiday party, 2015
Surprise Baby Shower for Dr. Recchia, 2013
Amandeep presenting her poster at JPS, 2013 (Chicago, IL) |
Farewell Dinner for Nina, 2011 |
Selfies at Development, 2014 (Ottawa, ON) |
Sarah, Matteo, and Dr. Recchia at JPS, 2012 (Toronto, ON) |
Ladies who Lunch (in between conference presentations) |