Queen’s Attentional Dynamics Laboratory
Studying the cognitive and social neuroscience of attention
Our Research
Our lab studies the dynamics of attention, which captures how attentional processes ebb & flow over time, resulting in differences in performance and separating the unique factors that make your attentional experience different from others.
To explore this, we use behavioural experiments, collaborative activities, eye tracking, EEG, & fMRI to uncover attentional dynamics within social situations, across internal thoughts, & in digital environments.
TEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF ATTENTION
Within Social Situations
Our attention often gravitates towards social information like people, faces, and eyes due to their inherent importance within our everyday lives. However, a key question that we have yet to answer is what properties control how and when attentional dynamics manifest in social settings.
TEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF ATTENTION
Across Internal Thoughts
Our attention often fluctuates between our external environment and our internal thoughts. Despite the frequent occurrence of these shifts though, we still do not have a complete understanding of why attentional dynamics occur and how and when they impact performance outcomes.
TEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF ATTENTION
In Digital Environments
Our attention is often studied in controlled laboratory environments, which typically simplifies the rich diversity of attentional dynamics that we typically find within real, online, and virtual contexts.
Our Team
Principal Investigator
Dr. Effie J. Pereira
(she/her)
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.
Madhumita Rajagopal
Lab Coordinator
(she/her)
Madhumita is a second-year BScH Psychology major. She is volunteering as a Lab Coordinator in the QuAD Lab, and is excited to learn more about individual differences in attention!
Fun fact: In her free time, she loves Indian classical dancing.
Honours Thesis Student
Jocelyne Harling
(she/her)
Jocelyne is a fourth-year BScH Psychology major and Biology minor. She is a thesis student in the QuAD Lab studying individual differences in attentional control.
Fun fact: In her free time, she loves reading books with a cup of coffee.
Honours Thesis Student
Mridula Srikanth
(she/her)
Mridula is a fourth-year BAH Psychology major. She is currently an Honour’s Thesis student at the lab and her research interests are in the Cognitive Neuroscience field, specifically, in attention and perception.
Fun fact: She loves to crochet and sing Carnatic (Indian classical) music in her free time.
Maddison De Beaupre
Directed Lab Student
(she/her)
Maddison is a third-year student majoring in Psychology with a minor in Health Studies. She is looking forward to gaining hands-on experience in research and collaborating with the incredible people in the QuAD lab.
Fun fact: Outside of academics, she is passionate about figure skating.
Emma Jamieson
Directed Lab Student
(she/her)
Emma is a fourth-year Psychology major (BAH). She is a special directed lab student in the QuAD Lab and she is very excited to be working on studying attentional dynamics and impression formation in social interactions.
Fun fact: This spring will be her first time on a plane!
Paige Babb
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Paige is a fourth-year Psychology major (BAH) and Health Studies minor. She is a research assistant for the lab working on data coding for some of the projects!
Fun fact: She loves to travel!
Aleah Williamson
Directed Lab Student
(she/her)
Aleah is a third-year Psychology major and is a directed lab student in the QuAD Lab.
Fun fact: Outside of school, she loves reading, crochet, and spending time with her cats.
Selina Chalmers
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Selina is a third-year BScH Biology and Psychology specialization major. She is working as a research assistant in the Quad Lab and is building her skills in research and knowledge in attentional dynamics. Overall, she aspires towards a career in neuroscience research!
Fun fact: She has lived in three different countries so far!
Yvonne Pelau
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Yvonne is a fourth-year in Psychology (BAH) and Concurrent Education. She is a volunteer research assistant and looks forward to studying attention and learning in students!
Fun fact: She also speaks Romanian.
Dilara Sanli
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Dilara is completing her first year at Queen’s University and intends to major in Psychology. She is eager to gain hands-on experience in research and enhance her skills within the QuAD Lab.
Fun fact: She has two Bengal cats named Leo and Sofia.
Ryan Thompson
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Ryan is a third-year Psychology major and one of the QUAD lab's volunteer research assistants. She is super excited to study internal attention and daydreaming styles! She is a philosophy minor and hopes to blend her research with ideas and concepts pulled from both disciplines.
Fun fact: She has a rescue dog she is also trying to get involved in research—he has a naturally curious spirit.
Charlotte Siller
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Charlotte is a third-year BScH Biology and Psychology specialization major. She is currently volunteering as a research assistant in the QuAD lab and is excited to develop a diverse set of skills through her work in the lab!
Fun fact: She loves cats, and her favourite colour is green!
Lab Alumni
Angelina Liu (Social Media Coordinator in Fall 2024)
Julia Wang
Research Assistant
(she/her)
Julia is a third-year Psychology major. She is really excited to learn about creativity and daydreaming and support data coding in the QuAD lab!
Fun fact: She believes that life is living art, and we are so lucky in psychology to have the opportunity to be curious about it!
