ECDL

Early Cognitive Development Lab

People

Principal Investigator: Dr. Jeff Loucks

Jeff Loucks

Jeff Loucks is an associate professor at the University of Regina, the head of the Department of Psychology, and the director of the ECDL. Jeff originally hails from Kingston, Ontario, where he earned his bachelors from Queen’s University. He earned his PhD from the University of Oregon, and held a postdoctoral position at the University of Washington before working at the U of R. Jeff’s research has historically focused on how infants and children perceive human action, and how that underlies more complex social understanding. However, since the birth of his children he has also become very interested in how children conceptualize non-human animals. When he’s not teaching or working, he enjoys running and biking around Saskatchewan, and exploring the world with his two young children.

A copy of Jeff’s CV can be found here.

Lab Managers

Emily Spasoff

Emily Spasoff is in her fourth year of a Bachelor of Science program, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Biochemistry. She has a strong interest in developmental psychology and is excited to help out with the current research being conducted. When she is not in school, Emily enjoys playing ringette and spending time with friends and family at the cabin.

Maija Kiviharju

Maija Kiviharju is a fourth-year student who is completing her Bachelor of Science Honours in Psychology (minoring in Biology). She is largely interested in children’s development and is excited to conduct her honours thesis on children’s cognition with Dr. Jeff Loucks as well as support the ECDL as a lab coordinator. Other interests of Maija’s particularly pertain to parenting, children’s emotional regulation, and child trauma. Outside of class, Maija additionally volunteers in the Social Context, Health, and Trauma (SCHT) Lab with Dr. Bridget Klest and the Child and Social Psychology Research (CaSPR) Lab with Dr. Sarah Zanette.

Honours Students

Thomas Czinkota

Thomas Czinkota (he/him) is a fifth year psychology student (minoring in philosophy) who is completing his honours thesis in the lab. His interests are primarily in psycholinguistics and cognitive psychology. When not studying, Thomas can be found either working for the Public Safety Agency, as the Business Manager of The Carillon, at the gym, or secretly writing poems. .