Our Team
Christopher Bowie, PhD, C.Psych.
Lab Director
Dr. Bowie is a clinical psychologist and Professor in the departments of psychology and psychiatry at Queen’s University. He primarily studies neurocognition and functional disability in severe mental disorders like schizophrenia and mood disorders such as depression and bipolar disorder. Neurocognition refers to the functions of the brain that allow us to perceive and process information and guide our actions. When we talk about attention, memory, and problem solving, we are referring to neurocognitive functions. Functional disability refers to difficulties performing in areas of life such as academics, working, living independently, and socializing with others.
Tammy Vanrooy
Clinical Research Associate
After graduating from Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario with a B.A. Law (Hon.) in 2001, Tammy worked as a Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist with Addictions and Mental Health Services - KFL&A in Kingston, Ontario from 2001-2016. She has a wealth of experience in vocational program development, direct client service delivery, and community outreach. As a mental health professional, Tammy has over 20 years of clinical experience and has worked with a broad range of community partners, mental health service providers, educational institutions, hospitals, employers, and other supports within the community to improve client care.
Tammy joined the CPD Lab team in 2016 to help coordinate some of the lab’s clinical research studies and also assists with the delivery and implementation of the Action Based Cognitive Remediation treatment program as a trainer and therapist. She continues to foster greater collaboration amongst mental health professionals and community partners to advance community and national mental health initiatives and to promote research that will lead to innovation and the development of leading-edge best practices aimed at improving mental health care.
Emma Wilkinson Research Assistant
Emma graduated from Queen’s University in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. She completed her undergraduate thesis in the Motivation and Social Cognition (MaSC) Lab where she used a newly developed virtual reality software called MPDepth (Depth from Motion Parallax) to examine ways in which romantic couples conversed virtually. Emma has been a member of the CPD Lab since May 2022 and is excited to continue building her clinical and data analytical skills this year. Emma is particularly interested in psychotic spectrum disorders with an emphasis on early intervention, community and interpersonal functioning, as well as accessible and effective cognitive interventions.
Noa Shram Research Assistant
Noa graduated from Queen’s University in May 2023 with a Bachelor of Science (Hon.) in Psychology. Noa started at the CPD Lab as a SWEP student in May 2022. Noa also completed her undergraduate honours thesis with the CPD Lab, for which she examined anxiety and cognitive performance in individuals with depression. Noa is now working as a full time research assistant with the lab, where she is continuing to work on her thesis project as well as other ongoing studies on depression. Noa is excited to gain more clinical experience in her new role. She is especially interested in the cognitive biases and cognitive impairments present in depressive and anxiety disorders, and how these may impair daily functioning.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Chloe Stewart, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Chloe graduated from the University of Toronto with a bachelor's degree in psychology and criminology & sociolegal studies. She completed a master's degree in cognitive neuroscience at University College London with a focus on the development of executive functions in term and preterm infants. Her PhD research at Western University focused on the experience and expression of guilt in healthy adults and in neurodegenerative disorders.
Graduate Students
Stephanie Woolridge
Fifth-Year PhD Student
Stephanie graduated with a B.A. (Hon.) in the department of Psychology at Queen’s University with a minor in sociology. For her undergraduate thesis, Stephanie developed a novel training paradigm which used eye-tracking to reduce the commonly held bias in depression to preferentially focus one's attention on negative information. Stephanie's Master's thesis explored the neuropsychological profiles of individuals with early episode psychosis, identifying distinguishing characteristics between individuals with cannabis-induced psychosis versus a primary psychotic disorder (e.g., schizophrenia). Stephanie's doctoral research explores treatment outcomes and social cognition in early psychosis, with an emphasis on how interpersonal relationships, intimacy, and social support are associated with well-being and recovery in this population. Stephanie is currently completing her clinical residency at The Royal in Ottawa.
Casey Upfold Second-Year Masters Student
Casey graduated from the University of Guelph with a B.A. (Hon) in Psychology and a Minor in Child and Family Studies. She conducted her thesis on public perceptions of people with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in the Criminal Justice System. After graduating, Casey worked as a Research Assistant in the Forensic Psychiatry Program at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton for four years. During her time there, Casey was involved in numerous studies for individuals involved with the Forensic Mental Health System in Canada. Casey’s clinical and research interest center around individuals with severe mental disorders, stigmatization, and advancing assessment and intervention in ways that can improve individuals functioning and quality of life.
Chelsea Wood-Ross
Fourth-Year PhD Student
Chelsea graduated from Queen’s University with a B.Sc (Hon.) in Psychology. Chelsea completed her undergraduate thesis in the CPD lab where she studied avoidance of cognitive effort in major depressive disorder. As a Master's student, Chelsea compared performance in individuals with geriatric depression on traditional neuropsychological tests to experimental cognitive measures in collaboration with the PACt-MD study. Chelsea’s research interests are focused on exploring mechanisms associated with avoidance of cognitive challenge in depression using experimental methods.
Olivia Simioni Second-Year Masters Student
Olivia graduated from the University of Ottawa with a B.A. (Hon.) in Psychology. Her honours thesis focused on memory reconsolidation and examined whether an expectation for learning impacts the mechanisms involved in updating long-term memory. Olivia has since worked as a research assistant at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre in the Schizophrenia Recovery Program. In her graduate studies, Olivia is interested in focusing on functional outcomes and recovery in individuals with psychosis.
Lindsay Simourd
First-Year PhD Student
Lindsay completed her B.Sc. (Hon) in Psychology with a minor in Biology at Queen’s University. For her undergraduate thesis, Lindsay utilized a novel measurement approach for detecting and describing patterns of neurocognitive impairment in remitted depression. By employing tasks of increasing difficulty, Lindsay’s thesis explored the extent to which neurocognitive performance in remission may be influenced by appraisals of task difficulty and self-evaluations of one’s own ability. In graduate school, Lindsay is excited to continue working to understand clinical and neurocognitive recovery in severe mental disorders.
Undergraduate Thesis Students
Anna Baumgartner
Anna is in her fourth year of her Bachelor of Science (Hon.) degree in Psychology. She is currently working on her thesis in the CPD Lab, which will explore the impact on family members who care for individuals experiencing psychosis. She has previously worked as a research assistant on a study related to self-disclosure and self-esteem in a social psychology lab and is looking forward to gaining research experience in a clinical psychology environment. Anna hopes to learn more about psychosis, as well as the traits that best help family members to care for their loved ones experiencing psychosis.
Emily Robbie
Emily is in her fourth year of her Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. She is particularly interested in clinical and cognitive psychology in a clinical research setting. Within this, she is interested in exploring factors pertaining to chronic schizophrenia spectrum disorder as well as social mechanisms that can impact daily functioning and treatment in individuals with particular psychological disorders. Emily is excited to broaden her research skills by administering cognitive assessments and learning methods to improve quality of life through intervention strategies. For her role in the team, Emily has completed a Special Directed Lab and is now currently working on her thesis with the CPD Lab, focusing on motivational factors in individuals with chronic schizophrenia spectrum disorder.
Special Directed Lab Students
Abigail Wiliszewski
Abigail is in her fourth year of her Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) degree in Psychology. As a SWEP student this past summer, she began to develop valuable research skills, especially by completing cognitive assessments when working with participants. She also expanded her knowledge about depressive disorders and psychosis throughout the summer. As a directed lab student, Abigail will continue her involvement in the ongoing depression studies and also contribute to psychosis research. She hopes to learn more about the experiences of stigma in psychosis and the cognitive deficits in depression, and how it can impact one’s functional outcomes and quality of life.
Research Assistants
Heather Reid
Heather is in her third year of her Bachelor of Science (Hon.) in Psychology. This will be her first year in the CPD Lab but second year as a research assistant, having worked in the Adolescents Dynamics Lab last year. Heather is eager to expand her knowledge of psychological disorders particularly the factors (i.e., neurological and cognitive) that play important roles in the functional recovery of these disorders. More specifically, Heather is interested in the influence of interventions such as psychoeducation and sleep regulation in the functional recovery of disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar mood disorders. She is looking forward to gaining experience in a clinical research environment and is eager to continue to learn!
Maya Druss-Wong
Maya is in her third year of her Bachelor of Science (Hon.) degree in Psychology. As a research assistant with the CPD Lab in her second year and throughout the summer, she developed psychophysiological data analysis and behavioural coding skills. This year, she will be conducting neuropsychological assessments to examine social cognition and social motivation in individuals with chronic psychosis and she is excited to gain hands-on experience working directly with participants. She is especially interested in the design and implementation of intervention treatments in clinical settings to improve everyday cognitive functioning and executive skills for individuals with psychosis and depression. Maya is passionate about increasing the accessibility and acceptability of mental illness services in underserved communities by decreasing stigma and addressing the social determinants of health.
Ava Hill
Ava is in her third year of her Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. As a research assistant in the CPD Lab she is looking forward to studying treatment interventions designed to improve the cognitive skills of individuals with psychotic disorders, with a particular interest in cognitive remediation therapy. Following her undergraduate degree, she hopes to pursue a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology, with the long-term goal of developing therapeutic techniques for those living with severe mental illness. Ava is passionate about dismantling the stigma surrounding mental disorders and wishes to honour her late grandmother’s experience with bipolar disorder in her research efforts.
Sachpreet Grewal
Sach is in her fourth year of her Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. This is her third year working with the CPD Lab, and she is looking forward to gaining more insight on cognitive disorders and the target treatment interventions for improving the quality of life in affected individuals. Sach is interested in enriching her understanding of the psychological processes and structural cognitive components involved in cognitive functioning, and learning how this is expressed in psychosis and depression. Sach is passionate about dismantling the stigma around mental illness. In her future, she hopes to work with our adolescent population and provide treatment for major psychological disorders.
Alyssa Harty
Alyssa is in her third year of a Bachelor of Science (Hon.) degree in Psychology with a Minor in Biology. This is her first year working as a research assistant in the CPD Lab and she is looking forward to expanding her knowledge of psychological disorders and how to develop effective treatment interventions that improve quality of life. She is excited to gain more experience working within a lab as well as developing her clinical skills. After completing her undergraduate degree, Alyssa plans to complete a master’s degree and PhD to become a clinical psychologist. She will specialize in trauma resiliency and work with first responders to develop effective, positive coping mechanisms to improve well-being in these highly stressful, often traumatizing professions.
Isabel Bruce
Isabel is in her third year of a Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology and the Concurrent Education program. She is eager to understand the cognitive impairments that underlie disorders such as schizophrenia and how cognitive mechanisms can impact social and occupation domains. Isabel is interested in the implementation of treatment interventions in clinical settings to promote cognitive abilities that improve quality of life. In addition, she is looking forward to developing effective research skills in the field of psychology. With the intent to pursue clinical psychology in school settings, Isabel is driven by her passion to create safe and inclusive environments for those struggling with mental illness.
Olivia Merulla
Olivia is in her third year of her Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. Olivia is interested in questions related to major psychological dysfunctions in adolescents and adults. She has special interest in life improvements for individuals living with major psychological disorders such as schizophrenia and major depressive disorder. Olivia is interested in mechanisms of functional recovery in individuals with major psychological disorders. She is excited to expand her research skills in a clinical research setting. Olivia is also looking forward to exploring the different neurocognitive mechanisms that play into the development and maintenance of major psychological disorders such as schizophrenia and major depressive disorder.
Bingyi Lin
My name is Bingyi Lin and I graduated from Queen’s University in May 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts (Hon.) in Psychology. I have worked as a SWEP research assistant this past summer, and I am excited to continue to contribute to the CPD lab as a research assistant, and learn more about depression related studies. I am interested in the aspects of how cognition varies with mood or affect related symptoms to affect individuals’ impaired daily functioning when experiencing mental health challenges. sdjkflhbaiushbdjfhbasdjkfhbs adjhfkbsdlfhjbsjlfhbljdhfgbgsjhdfbvsdbgfvgsdnlb fvljhsdabfvsd vjkhasdbfhljsadbgfuiawegfiuygfbvadjshgfaslkudf
Vanessa Sales
My name is Vanessa Sales and I am in my third year of a Bachelor of Science (Hon.) degree in Psychology. As a research assistant with the CPD Lab, I look forward to examining the interaction of neurocognitive functioning and cognitive processes in those with schizophrenia and mood disorders. I hope to expand my knowledge on the mechanisms of cognitive impairment and I am eager to get hands-on experience with data analysis methods, neuropsychological testing, and working with participants. I am especially interested in how we can use research to establish and implement psychosocial interventions to help improve the quality of life and cognitive abilities of those with psychological disorders.