BRAIN Lab

Dr. Theone Paterson

Lab Director,  Associate Professor

Dr. Paterson is interested in improving our understanding of the interplay between neurocognition and psychosocial functioning, and predicting real-world health outcomes in aging and chronic illness groups. Her research examines important outcomes such as medication adherence in individuals with chronic illnesses, and explores the utility of emerging cognitive measures, such as those evaluating everyday cognitive abilities in the prediction of real-world outcomes. Aims of this work are to translate basic research to clinical settings through design and implementation of screening measures with utility in diverse groups, as well as to develop psychological and cognitive programs aimed at improving real-world outcomes.

Clinically, she is trained as a lifespan neuropsychologist, and her practice has focused on neuropsychological assessment and differential diagnosis in children, adolescents, adults and older adults in the context of traumatic brain injury and experienced trauma, and in adults and older adults in the context of neurological and neurodegenerative disorders. You can view her Neurotree here.

Sanjit Roy, M.S.

Sanjit Roy is a Ph.D. candidate in the Social Dimensions of Health program at UVic. He is presently on leave from his position as Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Sciences, University of Dhaka. Sanjit has 14 years of professional experience (full-time and part-time) in the public and private sectors (Bangladesh, Canada, and the U.S.). Some mentionable career profiles include academic faculty, research, office administrator, and office manager positions. He has a strong background in quantitative research (B.Sc. and M. S. in Applied Statistics, University of Dhaka), and also has some experience using qualitative methods. Sanjit’s research interests include healthy aging and the quality of life of older adults, the use of administrative databases for policy-relevant research, population health, and social dimensions of health. His PhD dissertation aims to create a comprehensive profile of elder abuse among Canadian veterans using the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) data. He has been awarded several awards from the UVic (UVic Graduate Award, Corrine Lowen Memorial Award in Social Dimensions of Health, Ian Evans Graduate Scholarship, University of Victoria Retirees Association (UVRA) award, etc.). He has also won the RUTH A. Gardner Research Award 2020 from the Greater Victoria Eldercare Foundation. Sanjit has 15 publications in different national and international peer-reviewed journals.

Maddie Gregory, MA

Maddie is a second year PhD student in the Clinical Neuropsychology program. She is currently working on a patient-oriented research project as part of a Graduate Fellowship in conjunction with the BC SUPPORT unit and Island Health. Broadly, the project involves investigating the genetic, psychological and social determinants of risk for cognitive decline. She is also involved as a Research Assistant in a large-scale survey study (on which Dr. Paterson is a PI) aiming to study the impacts of COVID-19 on mental health, and is working on several publications. You can find her recent publications on Google Scholar.

Morgan Schaeffer, MSc

Morgan is a PhD candidate in the Clinical Neuropsychology program. Broadly, he is interested in the interplay between neurocognition, psychosocial functioning, and chronic illness. For his MSc thesis project, Morgan used secondary data to investigate the influence of BIG-5 personality traits on the development of specific dementia syndromes in older adults. He is currently a Research Assistant on the Impacts of COVID-19 on Cognitive Functioning Study. You can find his recent publications on Research Gate.

Cian Dabrowski, MS

Cian is a second year PhD student in the Clinical Neuropsychology program. She holds a B.A. in psychology from The Ohio State University and an M.S. in Clinical Psychology from Loyola University Maryland. Her past research involved improving outcomes for TBI patients admitted to the ICU. She is currently working on multiple projects, including assessing individuals for cognitive impairment after COVID-19. Cian is broadly interested in exploring physiological and neuropsychological factors of trauma exposure, as well as ways in which people can be resilient in the face of stress and chronic illness.

Alison Chung, BA

Alison is a second year Clinical Neuropsychology master’s student. She is broadly interested in neurocognitive and psychosocial predictors of health in older adults living with dementia, chronic conditions, and neurodegeneration. For her master’s thesis, she is using secondary data and longitudinal structural equation modelling methods to investigate the influence of psychosocial factors on the relationship between Parkinson’s disease symptoms and cognition.

Zoë Gilson

Zoë is a first-year master’s student in the Clinical Neuropsychology program. She is broadly interested in cognitive aging, dementia, and related disorders over time; more specifically, her research focuses on the implementation and clinical validity of interventions for cognitive decline in older adulthood, particularly involving modifiable lifestyle factors and health behaviours. For her master’s thesis, she will be piloting and exploring an mHealth psychoeducation intervention for older adults with subjective cognitive concerns that aims to prevent cognitive decline in later life.

Leah Derry

Leah is a fourth year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science with Honours in psychology at the University of Victoria. She is working under the supervision of Dr. Paterson to investigate the relationship between subjective and objective cognition, as well as how different lifestyle factors may interact with the experience of self-reported subjective cognitive decline, in the context of early intervention for Dementia. She also works as a research assistant on a scoping review project that examines biological aging. Leah is interested in the areas of clinical neuropsychology and cognitive sciences and hopes to pursue graduate studies and a career in a similar field. During her free time, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, cooking, and listening to music.

Jasmeen Khella

Jasmeen is a 4th year undergraduate student studying psychology at the University of Victoria. She is currently researching social supports available for post-secondary students with ADHD. She is interested in clinical psychology and hopes to pursue a career in which she can work towards making society more equitable and accessible for everyone. She is currently working as a Behavioural Interventionist and in her free time, enjoys hiking, reading, and crafts.

Emma Kiedyk, BA

Emma is the Laboratory Manager at the BRAIN Lab. She completed her undergraduate degree at McGill University with an honors in psychology and a second major in world religions (specializing in Buddhist studies). After graduation, Emma worked as the lab coordinator at the Cognitive Science Lab at McGill before moving to South Korea for a year to teach English. Now, back on the West Coast, Emma is beyond thrilled to be coordinating the BRAIN lab. Her future career goals include delivering psychotherapy to underrepresented and struggling youth in the community. When she is not working, Emma enjoys painting, cooking, listening to audio books, and being out in nature with her dog, Chloe. 

Kudrat Bhinder

Kudrat is a third-year undergraduate student studying psychology at the University of Victoria. She is currently working on a project involving the impact of COVID-19 on cognitive functions. Her interests lie in the realm of cognitive functioning, TBI and neurocognitive disorders and wishes to pursue clinical neuropsychology in graduate school. Apart from this, she likes to hike and read.

Leah Brandemark

Leah is a second-year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. She holds a wide variety of research interests and is currently assisting in a systematic review on the cognitive impacts of COVID-19. Outside of her studies, she enjoys baking and spending time with animals and friends

Caleb Gardner

Caleb is a fourth-year psychology undergraduate at the University of Victoria. He is currently a research assistant for the Cognitive Impacts of COVID-19 study, and contributes through participant screening and data entry. Following his graduation from UVic, he plans to pursue a masters degree and career in clinical psychology. His primary interests include the ongoing treatment of mental health disorders, the accessibility of therapeutic services, and patient outcomes in a clinical setting.

Taleesha Hall

Taleesha is an undergraduate student in the mind and brain stream of the psychology program. She is hoping to pursue clinical neuropsychology in the near future. Taleesha is currently a research assistant on the Investigating Neuropsychological Consequences of COVID-19 on adults, and Examination of Associated Risk and Resilience Factors Study. She enjoys baking, baseball, animals and the outdoors.

Heather Hawirko

Heather is a fourth-year psychology student at the University of Victoria and a research assistant in the BRAIN Lab. She is currently contributing to a study examining the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on cognition. Heather’s research interests include aphasia, apraxia, and cognitive changes related to stroke. She is dedicated to supporting older adults in stroke recovery groups, where she works with them in their communication abilities and helps foster meaningful connections within their communities.

Amalie Kerridge

Amalie is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing a Biology Psychology degree. She is currently assisting with the systematic review on cognitive impacts of COVID-19 study. She is passionate about improving life quality for neural-diverse youth and works as a part-time Behavioural Interventionist. Her ultimate goal is to pursue a career in optometry and potentially specialize in pediatrics. In her free time, Amalie enjoys surfing, or any other water sports. 

Gabriele Klassen

Gabby is a third-year undergraduate student working towards completing her BSc, with a major in psychology and a minor in anthropology. She is currently a research assistant involved in studying the cognitive impacts of COVID-19 with the BRAIN Lab. Specifically, she is passionate about exploring the field of psychology through the mental health and well-being, and the neuropsychology streams. Outside of her academic pursuits, Gabby enjoys hiking, reading, and spending time outdoors with her friends.

Hannah Kroeplin

Hannah is currently aiding in the project studying the Neuropsychological Consequences of COVID-19. She is in her third year of undergraduate studies in Biology and Psychology. Her primary interests are related to chronic illness and age related decline as well as behavioural neuropsychology. She hopes to pursue a career in psychology and education focusing on studying adaptive measures for childhood and adult learning. In her spare time, Hannah enjoys playing ultimate with the UVic women matching team as well as cooking and spending time outdoors.

Kimberly Le-Ba

Kimberly Le-Ba is a fourth-year psychology student at UVic. She is currently a Research Assistant at the Brain Lab, helping on the cognitive impacts of COVID-19 study. Additionally, she works as a Research Assistant in the Branch Lab, focusing on projects related to community and newcomer health. Her research interests include the neurobiology of early stress and trauma and their effects on cognition and behavior. She aspires to enter a Clinical Psychology graduate program with the goal of making a meaningful impact on community health.

Emily McCulloch

Emily finished her Bachelor of Science in psychology at Uvic in April 2024, where she wrote her honours thesis on social media use and misinformation. She is a research assistant involved in various projects at the brain lab. She has previously assisted with the Impacts of mHealth App Use study, and currently helps manage the lab website and social media. In her free time, she enjoys decorating, singing, and yoga.

Miki McGhee

Miki is completing her final year as an undergraduate student, focusing on the mental health and wellbeing stream in psychology.  She is currently a research assistant on the Investigating Neuropsychological Consequences of Covid-19 study. Her long-term goal is to become a clinical psychologist specializing in trauma and addictions or forensic psychology. Her research interests include the protective role of connectedness and community on addiction and the social determinants associated with substance use disorder.

Olivia Gale

Olivia is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in psychology. Her ultimate goal is to be a clinical psychologist who specializes in children and youth with chronic illness. She hopes to work directly with patients in order to create treatment plans and help them to navigate life after diagnosis. Outside of school, Olivia enjoys reading, spending time with friends and tide pooling.