Our Team
Studying the socio-cognitive neuroscience of attention
Dr. Effie J. Pereira
Principal Investigator
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Effie is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology and Director of the QuAD Lab. Before this, she completed her Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Waterloo & her PhD at McGill University.
Fun fact: Outside of the lab, Effie is a big TV & movie buff, and she credits her love of science to growing up as a Trekkie
Dr. Allison Drody
Post-doctoral Fellow
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Allison completed her PhD in Psychology (Cognitive Neuroscience) at the University of Waterloo. She is interested in how and why the focus of our attention changes over time, particularly in media-rich environments where opportunities for distraction are abundant
Fun fact: Outside of research, Allison enjoys dance, martial arts, and reading.
Emily Allan
Lab Coordinator
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Emily is a fifth-year Psychology major with a minor in English Literature at Queen's University. She is excited to build her skills in cognitive research and develop hands-on lab experience. She aspires to have a career in cognitive research.
Fun fact: She lived in England for 8 months!
Aahana Uppal
Master’s Student in Cognitive Neuroscience
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Aahana is a Master’s student in the Cognitive Neuroscience program at Queen’s University. She completed her Bachelor of Cognitive Science (Honours) degree at Carleton University in 2025. She is excited to learn more about individual differences in attention and to incorporate eye-tracking and neuroimaging measures in her research.
Fun fact: Aahana was in a band with her sister and cousin for a Lady Gaga cover at the age of 6!
Mridula Srikanth
Master’s Student in Cognitive Neuroscience
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Mridula is a Master’s student in the Cognitive Neuroscience program at Queen’s University. She completed her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Psychology at Queen’s University in 2025. She is excited to learn more about attention and social cognition and to explore new directions and broaden her research horizons.
Fun fact: Mridula loves to crotchet, sing Carnatic (Indian classical) music, and explore new coffee places.
Evren Bradley
Programmer
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Evren is a third-year Mechatronics Engineering student at Queen's University. They are excited to learn about dynamic attention develop a research platform for the QUAD lab!
Fun fact: Evren is a classically trained pianist and sings in a choir.
Ella Gronlund
Honours Thesis Student
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Ella is a fourth-year Life Sciences Specialization major at Queen’s University. She hopes to pursue research in Neuroscience post-undergrad and is excited to strengthen her research skills and learn more about attentional dynamics this year.
Fun fact: Ella can do a pretty solid headstand and is half Norwegian!
Naomi Heyman
Honours Thesis Student
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Naomi is a fourth-year Psychology major at Queen's University with an interest in cognitive neuroscience. She is excited to learn more about attentional processes and social judgements through her thesis work in the lab. She aspires to have a career where she helps other through therapy.
Fun fact: Naomi loves anything to do with creating, from art to crochet to baking!
Honours Thesis Student
Mia Popelas
(she/her)
Mia is a fourth-year Psychology student at Queen’s University. She is excited to get hands-on experience in the lab and build the skills needed to explore how attention works in creative minds and social interactions.
Fun fact: Mia spends her free time taking photos, watching movies, and learning Irish!
Ashlin Hutcheson
Directed Lab Student
Ashlin is a fourth-year Concurrent Education student at Queen's University. She is completing a BioPsychology specialization and a minor in French Studies. She is looking forward to gaining valuable research experience in the QuAD lab and learning more about interpersonal physiological synchrony within dyadic interactions.
Fun fact: She just completed an exchange in Switzerland and took her psychology courses in French!
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Ava Fallah
Directed Lab Student
Ava is a fourth-year undergraduate student at Queen’s University specializing in Psychology, with interests in attention in digital environments. She is excited to support ongoing research in the QuAD Lab and to further develop her research skills.
Fun fact: In her free time, Ava enjoys baking and practicing Pilates.
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Dilara Sanli
Directed Lab Student
Dilara is a third-year Psychology Specialization student at Queen’s University. She is excited to expand her skills in research.
Fun fact: Dilara lives with her two Bengal cats named Leo and Sofia.
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April Dinger
Research Assistant
Hatice April is a third-year Psychology Specialization student at Queen's University. She is excited to strengthen her research skills and explore how attention influences human behavior, thinking, and learning through her work in the QuAD Lab.
Fun fact: She competed in darts for several years and enjoys going on long walks.
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Emma Chalmers
Research Assistant
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Emma is a second-year in the Biology and Psychology Specialization, joining as a volunteer research assistant. She is excited to learn more about the various aspects of cognitive psychology and attention. She aspires to study medicine and psychology.
Fun fact: She has 3 nationalities!
Jalyn Klein
Research Assistant
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Jalyn is a fifth-year Psychology major at Queen’s University, volunteering in the QuAD Lab as a research assistant. She is excited to learn more about attention in digital environments and strengthen her research skills.
Fun fact: She is a triplet!
Jasmine Kaur
Research Assistant
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Jasmine is a fourth-year Psychology major at Queen's University. She is excited to gain hands-on research experience and is especially interested in cognitive and social psychology, particularly how attention shapes our everyday interactions and experiences.
Fun fact: She spent a semester abroad in Singapore and loves learning about different cultures through travel!
Mya Gallant
Research Assistant
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Mya is a third-year Health Sciences student at Queen's University. She is excited to join the QuAD lab this semester and help with ongoing projects. She is looking forward to learning more about attentional dynamics in social interactions.
Fun fact: Mya loves making short films and exploring new hikes in her free time!
Mikayla Toplis
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Mikayla is a fifth-year Biology and Psychology student at Queen's University, volunteering in the lab as a research assistant. She is excited to learn more about the attentional dynamics that shape our experiences and to strengthen her research skills.
Fun fact: She loves to travel, and her favorite place she's been to is London!
Olivia Socol
Research Assistant
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Olivia is a second-year Health Sciences student at Queen’s University. She looks forward to developing her research skills and learning more about how attentional processes shape human behaviour.
Fun fact: Olivia is a classically trained opera singer and loves performing in her spare time!
Sarah Sadek
Research Assistant
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Sarah is a fourth-year Psychology specialization major at Queens's University. She is passionate about learning more about human cognition and how to operate new research technologies.
Fun fact: She grew up competing in swimming!
Vishakha Desai
Research Assistant
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Vishakha is a fourth-year Physics major at Queen’s University. She is excited about interdisciplinary work and looks forward to learning more about how attentional processes unfold over time in various environments.
Fun fact: She adores hiking, animals, and being out in nature!
Lab Alumni
Lab Coordinators
Madhumita Rajagopal (Fall24-Summer25)
Jocelyne Harling (Fall25-Summer26)
Honours Thesis Students
Jocelyne Harling (Fall24—Winter25)
Mridula Srikanth (Fall24—Winter25)
Aleah Williamson (Fall25-Winter26)
Leila Belhis (Fall25-Winter26)
Directed Lab Students
Emma Jamieson (Winter25)
Aleah Williamson (Winter25)
Yvonne Pelau (Fall24)
Ryan Thompson (Fall24)
Udita Chauhan (Fall25)
Mia Popelas (Fall25-Winter26)
Charlotte Stiller (Winter26)
Research Assistants
Paige Babb (Winter25)
Julia Wang (Winter25)
Angelina Liu (Fall 24)
Maddison de Beaupre (Fall24—Summer25)
Izabela Veljkovic (Summer25—Winter26)
Selina Chalmers (Fall24—Winter26)
Ryan Thompson (Winter24—Winter26)
Dani Birenbaum Fall25 —Winter26)
Ava Fallah (Winter26)