eSupervisor Detail

About me

I recently earned my PhD in Psychology from the University of New Hampshire. My research interests broadly fit within animal cognition. More specifically, I investigated helping behavior in nonhuman animals and the potential underlying motivations. After earning my Master's degree, I began teaching Introduction to Psychology in conjunction with the Teaching Practicum, which provided formal training. Subsequently, I instructed Psychology of Primates and Statistics in Psychology.

Interests: My research interests broadly fit within the field of animal cognition, which aims at gaining insight into the mental capabilities that guide behavior in nonhuman animals. I am particularly interested in topics that have received more controversy such as language and empathy in nonhuman animals. My Master’s thesis investigated prosocial helping behavior in rodent cagemates and whether it is consistent with empathy, the capacity to perceive and understand others’ emotions, take their perspective, and assess causation for their emotional state. This question has been explored by previous researchers, however I felt as though they were missing a critical component: whether the helping paradigm was causing significant stress to the trapped rat. Without assessing the stress effects of the paradigm, one cannot conclude whether the helper rat is recognizing stress in their trapped cagemate and whether they may be acting to alleviate that stress. My methods integrate behavioral and physiological data to better assess what is occurring during helping. Overall, I aim to evaluate current paradigms for testing empathy-like behaviors and to work towards building a more effective paradigm. This can lead us to a better understanding of the complex cognitive abilities of nonhuman animals.