Lab Members

Principal Investigator

holly 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). She currently holds the Concordia University Research Chair in Moral Development and Education. Holly loves dancing with her kids, curling up with a good book, and long dinners with friends.

Doctoral Students

melane 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 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.

Master’s Students

Laura Pareja Conto

Laura completed her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Concordia University. She wrote her honours thesis under the supervision of Dr. Recchia. Her work focused on exploring how Colombian adolescents reason about solving intergroup conflicts with rival groups in their schools, and how their overall levels of trust in others and in school authorities was associated with their reasoning. She is currently completing her Master’s in Child Studies, and is interested in studying restorative approaches in school settings. Laura enjoys reading, hiking, Brazilian music, and losing track of time with her loved ones.

Nazila Tolooei

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.

Christine Kinsley

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.

Anna Saint-Martin

Anna graduated from McGill University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She is currently completing her Master’s in Child Studies at Concordia University, and is interested in the effects of maternal coaching strategies on children’s of blame in peer victimization scenarios, as well as how children make sense of their own morality in the context of behavioural transgressions. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, working with children, playing fetch with her cat, drinking coffee, and baking.

Teresa Pirro

Prior to attending Concordia University, Teresa received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (majoring in Psychology and double minoring in Behavioral Science and Education) at McGill University. She is interested in studying how children dissent with their parents based on the social domain theory of development, by examining parent-child interactions. Teresa enjoys volunteering at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, as well as swimming, collecting miniature crystals, and spending quality time with family and friends.

Miranda Reid

Miranda graduated from the University of Regina with a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in psychology. Her Honours project focused on the implementation of mindfulness interventions in YMCA of Regina youth programming. She has a strong interest in collaborative research with non-profit organizations and is currently interested in the inquiry-based educational approach of Philosophy for Children. Miranda is an escape room enthusiast who enjoys daily meditation and cuddles with her cats.

Lab Coordinator

Julie Guindon

Julie completed her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Concordia University. She completed her honours thesis under the supervision of Dr. Recchia, which examined the maternal socialization of coping in response to children’s and adolescents’ peer conflicts. In addition to working at the RAD Lab, she is currently doing her Master of Arts in Educational Sciences at the University of Montreal and working as the research coordinator for the Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy Unit at the MUHC. Her research interests center around the socioemotional development of youth experiencing various difficulties (e.g., mental illness, trauma, victimization, maltreatment). Julie is a fan of gymnastics and tries to stay involved in the sport as much as possible. She also enjoys traveling, hiking, doing yoga, and eating out with family or friends.

Research Assistants

Ximena Melara Benitez

Kayla Guidon

Erika Infantino

Daniel Jimenez

Sandra Silva

Erika Infantino

Alessia Fratolillo

Gabrielle Leclerc

Elaine Psaradellis

Kristen Ferlisi

Ariane Lalonde

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