Nusrat has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Hons) from York University and plans to pursue a doctorate in Clinical Psychology further. She is primarily interested in neuropsychology, the effectiveness of psychological interventions, emotional regulation, the role of executive functioning in overall mental health, and psychopathology. She aspires to see the lived experiences of South Asians represented in the area of psychology in general. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, watching sitcoms, and travelling in her spare time.

Carey was an Institute Manager at the Emotion Transformation Insitute. Within her role, she supervised daily institute activities and helped support the 2-Day EFFT Caregiver Workshop. Broadly, her research interests include a variety of clinical and school-related topics. Carey graduated from the University of Guelph-Humber with a degree in Psychology and hopes to pursue graduate studies in School or Clinical Psychology in the near future.

After graduating with an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree and diploma in psychology, Rianna aims to pursue her future graduate studies in Psychotherapy or Speech Pathology, where she eventually works and helps those of different ages. Rianna cares a lot about helping those in need and hopes to continue doing that throughout her life and career. She is currently a Media Team Coordinator at the Family Psychology Centre and helps assist with interviews for the Support Team.

Leen attended York University’s Specialized Honours Psychology Bachelor of Science program. She is interested in continuing her studies in Clinical Developmental Psychology. Her role as a research assistant in the institute includes recruiting participants for the Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) workshop, registering them, and helping collect data for research. In her leisure time, she enjoys coaching children in Karate as she holds the Black Belt (2nd Dan) and likes painting.

Rahaf attended York University’s Specialized Honours Psychology program. She is passionate about youth mental health and development and is interested in the clinical neuropsychological field. As a research assistant in the EFFT institute, she participates in caregiver recruitment for the EFFT workshops and collects data for research. Rahaf is passionate about music and plays piano! 

Katie attended York University’s Honours Double Major in Psychology and International Development Studies. Katie’s interest lies in understanding parent-child and intimate relationships and increasing the literature on mental health in black communities. She aspires to pursue a master’s in counselling psychology. She loves dogs and has a Golden Retriever named Mylo.

Wajiha is studying psychology at the University of Guelph-Humber. After completing her undergraduate degree, Wajiha hopes to pursue graduate studies in Neuropsychology and eventually obtain her doctorate. Wajiha has always been passionate about learning new things and often wants to expand her horizons on various topics. She works alongside the Media team at the Family Psychology Centre and enjoys implementing her creative side through multiple projects.

She is interested in pursuing her Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology and aspires to become a counselling psychologist shortly. Her research interests include chronic illness and management, addiction, early childhood development, and clinical and mental well-being.

She is interested in family systems, parenting, romantic relationships, and youth mental health. She aspires to pursue graduate studies in counselling and psychotherapy to work with historically underserved populations. As an Institute Manager, Olivia oversaw daily institute activities and research projects, trained research assistants, and implemented new protocols.

Maya aims to pursue graduate studies in Clinical Psychology after graduating from Queen’s University. Maya was an Institute Manager at the Emotion Transformation Institute, which involved helping with the 2-Day EFFT Caregiver Workshop, supervising and supporting daily activity, and helping to develop new protocols.

Neven graduated from the University of Guelph-Humber with an Honours Bachelor of Applied Science in Psychology and General Arts and Science Diploma from Humber College. Neven has experience working in clinical, academic, and non-profit environments. Previously, Neven worked as a Jr Lead Behavioural Therapist where she helped kids diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder develop various skills to increase independence and appropriate behaviours.

Neven aspires to evolve academically, and professionally and work as a registered psychologist to expand her knowledge in learning about case conceptualization, treatment planning, counselling interventions and clinical assessments. She is interested in clinical, developmental, and sport psychology.

Her research interests mainly include adolescents' and young adults' emotional and psychological development. Specifically, she is interested in assessing the protective and risk factors associated with adolescent problematic behaviour. She plans to pursue her graduate studies in Clinical Psychology to become a Clinical Psychologist one day.

As a research assistant and blog coordinator for the Emotion Transformation Institute, she is responsible for recruiting and registering participants for the monthly EFFT workshop and writing blogs. She volunteers at the Halton Distress line in her free time and spends time with family and friends.

Katrina was an institute manager for the Emotion Transformation Institute at the Family Psychology Centre. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Science in Biology and Psychology from the University of Ottawa and a Master of Management of Applied Science in Biological Sciences from the University of Western Ontario. Her experiences in youth mentoring, community outreach, and the medical field made her conscious of the great need for mental health care. They fueled her passion for the field of psychology. Her current research interests include parent-child attachment, intergenerational and intrafamilial trauma, complex trauma, and psychopathology, with a keen interest in emotion regulation and its effect on family dynamics and relationships. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, playing the piano, running, and spending time with her loved ones.

Ali aims to pursue her graduate studies in Clinical Psychology and eventually work as a children’s behavioural therapist in schools. Ali is passionate about helping children experiencing difficulties in school and at home.

Kanika completed her Honours BSc at the University of Toronto Mississauga, where she double-majored in Psychology and Biology for Health Sciences. She plans to pursue graduate studies in Clinical Psychology. Her research interests include anxiety disorders and depression. In particular, she is interested in examining the various factors that may predict the presence and severity of such conditions. As a Research Assistant and Data Manager at the Emotion Transformation Institute, she is involved in participant recruitment for the EFFT workshop and data collection and management. She also writes and edits articles for the Family Psychology Center blog. She loves reading, writing, and learning to play the guitar in her free time.

Iris completed their Bachelor’s degree in Applied Science in Psychology, alongside a General Arts and Sciences Diploma and Research Skills and Analysis Certificate, at the University of Guelph-Humber. Their undergraduate thesis was a phenomenological study of post-secondary students’ experiences of social support during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the Emotion Transformation Institute, they were the EFFT Individual Research Study (EIRS) Coordinator, Participant Manager, and a research assistant. They maintained and audited the participant tracker, ensured the comfort and processing of research participants, assisted caregivers with experiential exercises during workshops, and liaised between Family Psychology Centre clinicians, incoming clients, and the institute to recruit participants for the individual arm of the study.

Iris is currently volunteering with crisis lines. As a prospective mental health worker passionate about 2SLGBTQ+ youth mental health, Iris’s interests include community psychology, mental health, addictions, trauma-informed and anti-oppressive research and counselling, and education.

Following her undergraduate degree from the University of Guelph with a major in Psychology, Emma became a research assistant and workshop coordinator with the Family Psychology Centre. Her interest in this stemmed from her love to work closely with children and families. She hopes to pursue a career that includes helping the development of children, family structures, and overall lifestyle.

She worked closely with the other research assistants and coordinators in order to help assist in the setup of our two-day Emotion Focused Family Therapy workshop. Her role included communicating with caregivers, helping with the organization of the workshop, and numerous more duties.

Shai is currently working as a behavioural therapist, helping children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder develop skills to aid their development. She is passionate about her work with children and is highly interested in understanding family dynamics. Shai hopes to work towards achieving a Master’s in Psychology in the future to develop further her education, career, and personal worker skills. Although she spends most of her time studying, she enjoys travelling, spending time with friends, and trying new restaurants in Toronto.

Mariam holds an MD from The Medical University of Lodz. She is working on obtaining her medical license here in Canada. Mariam joined the institute team to gain more exposure to various fields of medicine. She hopes to have the opportunity to learn the different methods of conducting rigorous research, which maybe she will want to incorporate into her practice one day. She is interested in learning about EFFT's effects on participants and its outcome on children and their families as a whole. There is no treatment without research; the research informs the therapy. Her role at the Emotion Transformation Institute consisted of registering and following up with caregivers and clinicians interested in attending workshops and general tasks at the lab. Although she spends most of her time studying, Mariam enjoys trying out the diverse range of restaurants Toronto offers.

During her time at the ET Insitute, Emily was one of the data managers and one of the institute coordinators. She has completed her HBA in Psychology from York University and is working as a research analyst for an emerging adult program at CAMH. Her research interests encompass the effects of early life stress and trauma on a child's socio-emotional and cognitive development. She is also interested in exploring the role of parent-child interactions and family functioning on child mental health outcomes. Emily is passionate about supporting the well-being of youth and their families through evidence-based interventions. She hopes to pursue graduate studies in clinical-child psychology soon.

Alex has completed a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Guelph, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Child and Family Studies.

Alex was a Research Assistant and Writing Coordinator within the Emotion Transformation Institute. She assisted with the monthly EFFT workshop and reviewed articles for the Family Psychology Center and Emotion Transformation blogs.

Alex is very passionate about mental health and aims to have her private counselling practice to assist others.

Scott Taylor completed his B.A. in Psychology at Carleton University. He conducted his thesis on ADHD, EF, and Procrastination under the supervision of Dr. Tim Pychyl. He worked at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute. Scott plans to continue his education and training in Clinical Psychology next fall. In his spare time, Scott loves playing golf, squash, reading, and watching the Bills win.

Max completed B.A. and M.A. degrees in Philosophy at the University of Ottawa before moving to Asia; he worked as a teacher and writing tutor for over six years (in India, South Korea, Thailand, and the Philippines). His observation of his students’ mental health challenges across various ages and backgrounds inspired his return to school to study psychology to become a clinician and researcher. He has a passion for teaching, research, and understanding the application of psychotherapeutic interventions to diverse populations.

Dima finished his Specialized Honours B.A. in Psychology at York University in 2020. Since then, he has been working to develop his research skills and experiences to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology. He is interested in studying pathological personality.

His time as a research assistant and assistant data manager at the Emotion Transformation Institute was invaluable in learning more about the research process. He enjoyed connecting caregivers to new approaches that help strengthen family relationships and be part of a fast-paced research setting.

At the time of writing (December 2022), Dima (https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dmytro-Rebrov) has published a research paper, presented at an international conference, works at York University as a laboratory manager for the Social Motivation Laboratory, and volunteers there as the group manager for the Migration & Critical Health Psychology Research Group, works as a psychometrist, and also volunteers as a helpline responder for the Distress Centres of Greater Toronto and Talk Suicide.

In his free time, Dima enjoys reading classic fiction from different periods of history and parts of the world.

Her research interests include addiction, trauma, criminal justice, and psychopathology. She plans to pursue her graduate studies in clinical psychology and work as a clinician with specialized forensic or military populations.

As a former institute research assistant, she worked closely with team members and caregivers to complete registration, collect data, and organize and operate the emotion-focused family therapy workshops. In her spare time, she enjoys travelling and learning new languages.

Before beginning his graduate studies, Brody attended the University of Guelph and received his BSc in the Biomedical Science Honours Program with minors in family & child studies and neuroscience. He’s passionate about providing mental health services to under-serviced and marginalized populations and hopes to pursue a career in psychiatry. Volunteering as a research assistant for the ET Institute was an enriching experience for Brody. He looks forward to one day incorporating EFFT into his future mental health-related endeavours.

Nandini aims to pursue a career in medicine, focusing on surgery as her long-term career aspiration. Her research interests are behavioural and emotional therapy, and she is involved with ongoing research at the family psychology center, which focuses on creating and sustaining emotionally balanced relationships.

Bethany was an institute coordinator at the Emotion Transformation Institute. Her research interests pertain to human behaviour and how the environment around one affects their behaviour, specifically, the behaviour of deviant populations within society and the adverse effects they face when labelled as evil. Furthermore, she is also interested in how coping mechanisms are developed by children when there are environmental stressors around them.

Brett Bean was an Institute Manager at the Emotion Transformation Institute. He hopes one day to become a psychologist specializing in trauma. To that aim, he is gaining the experience he needs to qualify for a Master's degree at the University of Toronto.

Samantha graduated with a BA Honours in Psychology from York University. She began volunteering at FPC as a research assistant helping with data collection, participant recruitment and workshop coordination. Currently, Samantha runs our team's social media pages. She was involved with posting relevant information about our institute and workshops. Her responsibilities included answering questions from caregivers and promoting our services.

Jacob is a graduate of the University of Toronto with a Hons. B.Sc. in neuroscience. While at the University of Toronto, he developed an interest in psychology and has involved himself in research, writing, and lecturing in psychology to nurture this interest.

Jacob’s research interests are primarily in clinical and social psychology. Along these lines, he is presently leading a study with ET Institute to determine how caregivers' beliefs change after attending a 2-day workshop in emotion-focused family therapy. Jacob is also interested in historical approaches to psychology. He has done much independent research in this line on psychoanalysis and analytical psychology, which he presents to the University of Toronto Jungian Society.

Sarah holds a Hons. B.Sc. in psychology and neuroscience from the University of Toronto. She is interested in the interplay between psychological issues and their physical manifestations in the brain.

Sarah’s work at the Emotion Transformation Insititute included managing the research team and new team hires and scheduling, coordinating workshops, and general research tasks. Recently, her roles have also extended to assisting with a research paper investigating the long-term effectiveness of EFFT outcomes for children with known mental health difficulties in collaboration with fellow ETL members and external colleagues.

When she is not at our lab or doing epilepsy research with Sick Kids, Sarah focuses on her passion for music and performance. Along with her majors, Sarah minored in Music History and Culture and has cultivated many performance opportunities throughout the city while singing with various groups.

Anastasia, formally our Institute’s manager, graduated from York University with an Honours B.Sc. in Psychology. She did her undergrad thesis in Cognitive Neuroscience and is interested in studying emotional development through neuropsychology. More specifically, she is interested in how one’s emotional regulation is related to executive functioning. In the future, she hopes to pursue Clinical Developmental Psychology. Some of her hobbies include travelling, drawing and practicing yoga.

Jessica Soliman completed a Specialized Honours B.A. in Psychology at York University and is currently completing the M.Ed. in Counselling Psychology at OISE, University of Toronto.

Jessica was a member of the Emotion Transformation Institute from 2019 to 2021 and developed her roles from Research Assistant to INstitute Coordinator. During her time here, Jessica gained valuable clinical and research skills. Jessica and her colleagues at the ET Institute had the opportunity to complete and publish a paper titled Therapist Adaptations for Online Caregiver Emotion-Focused Family Therapy During the COVID-19 Pandemic, published in the Journal of Person-Centered and Experiential Psychotherapies. Jessica has also developed a passion for Emotion-Focused Therapy, which she hopes to implore in her future career as a psychotherapist.

During her undergrad, Jessica completed her Specialized Honours Thesis titled, Understanding and Improving Bicultural Identity Integration (under the supervision of Dr. Jennifer Steele at the Interpersonal Perceptions and Social Cognitions Lab). In addition, Jessica is currently an Office Administrator at the Toronto Psychology Clinic. She is also a Graduate Assistant at the Coping, Affect and Resilience in Education (C.A.R.E) Lab, where she researches the mental health of those transitioning to university.

Jessica’s hobbies include reading (a huge Harry Potter fan), going to the gym, and singing at the top of her lungs!

Katerina completed her undergraduate degree from York University, where she double majored in Kinesiology and Psychology with Honours. She completed her undergraduate thesis on emotional intelligence, family communication styles and relationship satisfaction. She is interested in how and to what extent family dynamics play a role in emotional intelligence and development.

As a research team member, she had the opportunity to help and oversee the Emotion Focused Family Therapy workshops and coordinate former Emotion Transformation Institute ethics submissions. With the institute, she worked on a paper investigating the long-term effectiveness of EFFT.

Aside from working with the ET Institute, she was also the Volunteer Coordinator for the Family Psychology Center, for which she recruited and scheduled administrative volunteers for the school and summer terms.

Michael graduated from York University with a B.Sc. in psychology.

Michael's goals are to become a researcher, psychologist, and possibly even a university professor. He aims to learn EFT, Gottman, somatic psychotherapy and CBT to help couples and individuals with communication, trauma, and more.

Georgina completed her Hons. B.Sc. in biology at York University in 2018. Her research interests include how one’s emotional state affects their physical health.

Being at the Family Psychology Centre, she has learned about emotion regulation and transformation strategies through the use of Emotion-Focused Therapy. Additionally, she has seen the importance of a caregiver’s support in the recovery of one’s mental health.

Her primary role with the Family Psychology Centre was to organize the popular two-day Emotion-Focused Family Therapy workshops, where she was involved in caregiver registration and data collection and entry. Being a research assistant at the Family Psychology Centre has proved to be a very rewarding experience, filled with many learning opportunities.

His previous experience volunteering at a treatment center for addiction has inspired him to pursue a Clinical psychology degree.

Sara Al Kaati completed her Masters of Counselling in Psychology at Adler University, Vancouver. Outside academics, Sara volunteered at the Women Resource Society – Sister Space. Atira’s Women Resource Society is a not-for-profit organization committed to ending violence against women and children by providing direct service and increasing awareness of violence against women and children. Sister Space is the first and only women-only, community-accessible overdose prevention site. Sara’s role included creating a (Utilized Focused Evaluation) UFE. A UFE was chosen to evaluate Sister Space’s role in helping women who use the space and narcotics. Under the supervision of Hajar Masoud, Sara created and implemented a mixed-method design. Sara started a questionnaire that included quantitative and qualitative questions given to the women, interviewed staff, and organized and interpreted the scientific data.

Additionally, Sara helped release the data and create a report regarding the objectives for Sister Space. The notice was given to the Public Health Agency of Canada to evaluate funding applications for grants and contributions to Atira.

Her research interests include emotional processes, relational trauma, and nonverbal behaviour, and she has co-authored several articles and conference presentations in these areas. Clinically, Laura is interested in emotion-focused, trauma-focused, and attachment-informed therapies.

Chanel holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology Honours degree from York University. Her research interests include exploring the complexities of childhood experiences through the model of intergenerational transmission of parenting. She is inclined to investigate how this model interacts with the educational system to promote optimal development.

Chanel’s work at the Emotion Transformation Institute included general research and occasional administrative tasks for the psychology clinic. Additionally, her roles extended to managing advanced writing roles for the institute. As the former Project Coordinator for ET Institute’s ethics submission for the current and ongoing research project, she has completed the REB proposal for the 2019/2020 EFFT research study. She was also appointed Coordinator of ET Institute’s research paper that aimed to investigate the long-term effectiveness of EFFT outcomes for children with general mental health difficulties in collaboration with fellow ET Institute members and external colleagues.

Dan’s research interests pertain to the intersectionality of biological (genetic) and (neuro)psychological factors on the development and how the effects of childhood stressors and adversity impact developmental psychopathology in childhood and adolescence.

Dan’s role with the Emotion Transformation (ET) Institute as the Data Manager involved database upkeep, data collection, delegating various tasks to the junior and senior research assistants, and helping to organize the monthly EFFT workshops.

Dan was also a part of the ET Institute’s funding sub-committee, whose tasks revolved around applications for community grants/funds for the institute’s research projects.

Supervised by Dr. Muller in the Trauma & Attachment Lab, her research and clinical interests lie in intrafamilial trauma and attachment-based treatments.

Kristina has led numerous research projects over the years (e.g., as Research Manager at SickKids hospital, Research Coordinator at The SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health [formerly the Hincks-Dellcrest Centre] and The Summerville Family Health Team, and most recently as co-Lab Director at the Family Psychology Centre) and has co-presented at several international conferences.

She is a trained behavioural therapist and has over ten years of experience working with children and families in educational and clinical settings. Currently, she provides clinical assessment and therapy services to youth and families at Aurora's Child and Adolescent Psychology Centre.

Rakshita’s research interests include anything and everything about human behaviour and the mind; she is particularly interested in clinical psychology, with a unique taking on forensic psychology. At the Family Psychology Centre, she was dedicated to helping others receive the resources they need and was involved in the ongoing research at the centre.