Gwen is a postdoc in the PWB lab interested in cultural differences in well-being. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of California, Riverside with David Funder with a focus on person-culture fit and well-being. Afterwards she lived in Germany for 2 years as a Humboldt Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Bielefeld University. Outside of the lab she enjoys reading, playing board games, and exploring new places.

Natalie is currently a fourth year ROP student specialising in psychology and minoring in economics. She is interested in researching how wellbeing is mediated by varying cultural and social circumstances, as well as what constitutes a happy, meaningful life. In her free time, she enjoys playing and listening to music, napping, and exploring the city! 

My name is Rachel, and I am a fourth-year student pursuing a Psychology Specialist. My passion is in clinical psychology, where I am interested in investigating how psychotherapeutic factors common in clinical practice can be implemented at a broader, community level to achieve population well-being. Outside of the lab, I like visiting new restaurants, playing video games, and spending time with my dog, Luna.

Anna earned her master’s degree in psychology from Leipzig University in Germany and joined the lab for a research stay. She plans on entering a PhD program in Germany afterwards. She pursues her interest in Positive Psychology and is interested in factors that contribute to higher well-being and how major individual or population events affect well-being. Besides her studies, she loves the outdoors, sports like Yoga and climbing and reading and spending time with others.

Cookie is a 3rd year Psychology specialist and Fundamental genetics major. Her research interests fall across multiple disciplines, like social psych, personality psych, and genetics, as she explores the ultimate question of “What makes us who we are?”. Outside of academia, she enjoys badminton, cycling in nature, learning Japanese culture, and playing Switch.

Hi! My name is Yiyang, and I am currently a first-year master’s student in the Faculty of Information studying Human-Centred Data Science. I did my undergraduate studies at UofT in applied statistics and mathematics with a focus in economics. My research interests include well-being and public health related topics. In my spare, I enjoy exploring new restaurants and spending time cuddling with my cat.

Hi! My name is Muhammad, and I am a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a double major in Economics and Public Policy, with a Focus in Data Analytics and a Minor in Political Science.

At the Population Well-being Lab, I am researching how GDP is linked with subjective well-being within and across countries around the world. Specifically, I am trying to see if the Easterlin Paradox exists, using results from the Gallup World Poll.

Outside of the lab, I enjoy listening to podcasts, and trying new fried chicken places around the City!

Alannis is a rising third-year at Columbia University studying political science and education. Her research interests include public health and housing justice. Outside of research, Alannis loves working with children and animals, and spends much of her time in parks with her dog.

My name is Raphael, and I’m an international student from Germany. I will be interning at the PWB lab this summer and will receive my bachelor’s degree in psychology shortly after. Amongst my researcher interest are open and meta science, conceptual memory, and personality psychology. Outside the lab, I enjoy playing board games, watching movies, and riding the bike.

Hi! I’m Seoyoung, and I’m a UTEA-SSH award research trainee at the PWB Lab. I’m also a graduating HBSc Psychology Specialist student at the University of Toronto. Currently, I am investigating how the increased use of robots in the workplace may be linked to a socioeconomic disparity in well-being. When I am not in the lab, I go to classical music concerts to motivate myself to practice, read books written in Korean and English to keep up with both languages, and learn German to spice things up.

Freeman is a fourth-year undergrad at U of T specializing in psychology and minoring in philosophy and ecology. He is still exploring what he wants to do with his psychology degree after graduation – hopefully something related to mental health. In his spare time, he likes to play basketball, draw, and think about random things.

Manhal Sultana is a 4th year Honours B.Sc. student at the University of Toronto, with a Specialist in Psychology. She is a research assistant with the Population Well-Being lab, where she is currently exploring vaccine hesitancy amongst the pandemic. Her research interests are in psychopathology, neurocognitive disorders, and promoting psychological well-being. Outside of the lab, she is a research trainee at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), where she focuses on disease management within schizophrenia patients.

Hello! My name is Jialin and I’m entering my fourth year of the psychology specialist program in the fall. I’ll be completing a thesis in the Population Well-being Lab this year. My research interests are varied and span mental, emotional and physical health-related topics. In my free time, I enjoy reading, playing games, and learning languages.

Hi, my name is Amanda Solomon and I am a third-year independent project student in the Population Well-Being Lab. I am a Psychology Specialist and Buddhism, Psychology, and Mental Health Minor. My research interests include well-being and election outcomes, which I am currently studying, as well as income inequality and class based differences in well-being. Outside of the lab I love photography and collecting records. A fun fact about me is that I am a twin!

Hi! My name is Hajar Seiyad (she/her), and I’m working on an independent project with this lab. I’m a 4th-year undergraduate student doing a double major in Mental Health Studies and Political Science. My research interests include youth mental health, disparities in health and educational outcomes, memory, and perception. In my free time I enjoy reading and baking!

I am a first-time volunteer with the PWB lab, and I’m starting my third year of undergrad majoring in International Relations and Criminology. My main interests are in comparative law and in the different ways that justice systems reinforce inequalities. I’m hoping to translate this into a lab-related project on how societal well-being affects the frequency of crime and other deviant behaviours. Lastly, some things that make me happy are: puzzles, pets (I have three!) and playing the piano… and alliteration 🙂