PEOPLE
KIANA GEE
Lab Manager
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Kiana recently graduated from UC Irvine with her B.S. in Cognitive Science. She was previously a research assistant in this very lab. She enjoys studying developmental cognition, language acquisition, and is particularly interest in investigating how household dynamics influence children's ideas of inequality. In the future she hopes to continue her work with children and further her studies in graduate school. During her free time, she enjoys playing music, drawing, spending time with friends and family, and going out for boba runs.
DR. NADIA CHERNYAK
Lab Director/Principal Investigator
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Dr. Chernyak is faculty in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at UC - Irvine and the director of the lab. She received her BA and PhD from Cornell University, and completed additional postdoctoral training at various universities in the Boston area, including Brown University, Harvard University, Boston University, and Boston College. Her work investigates the early roots of our social behavior. She is particularly interested in how we can use developmental data to better understand the cognitive building blocks of our understanding of equity, justice, fairness, equality, and social group cognition. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation's CAREER Award, her most recent work has focused on the cognitive and social predictors of our understanding of inequality.
JACQUELINE BECK
Graduate Student
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Jacky is a graduate student working with Dr. Nadia Chernyak. Jacky received her B.S. in Psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and worked as a lab manager at the University of Chicago.
Jacky is interested in how children’s social environment shapes their beliefs and behaviors. In particular, she is interested in how children from different socioeconomic backgrounds explain concepts of equity, free will, and social mobility. In her free time, she likes to decompress by trying out new food and playing games.
SHARANYA BASHYAM
Graduate Student
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Sharanya is a graduate student working with Dr. Nadia Chernyak. She received her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Hyderabad, an M.A. in Applied Psychology with Specialization in Clinical Psychology from Tata Institue of Social Sciences, Mumbai, and an M.A. in Social Sciences (concentration - Psychology) from the University of Chicago.
Sharanya is interested in understanding how being bilingual shapes children's social cognition. She studies how markers such as status and familiarity affect children's language-based social preferences in diverse environments. Apart from research, Sharanya loves watching the latest K-dramas, reading fiction, and creating the perfect background playlist for graduate school work (...and coffee...at tea).
YUFEI ZONG
Graduate Student
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Yufei grew up in Zibo, a city in East China, and spent her university years in Beijing. She received a B.S. in Psychology from Beijing Normal University, and an M.S. in Developmental and Educational Psychology from Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Yufei is interested in children’s social cognition, particularly how they develop moral cognition and exhibit moral behaviors. In her spare time, Yufei enjoys listening to music, reading novels, exploring various coffee and boba shops, and spending time with her friends.
ISABEL HERRERA GUEVARA
Graduate Student
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Born and raised in Tijuana, B.C. Mexico, Isabel graduated from UC San Diego with a B.S. in Psychology with Specialization in Cognitive Psychology and a Biology minor. Previously, she was our very own DoSC lab manager.
Isabel is interested in who do we prefer to learn from developmentally and how they might influence our decisions and preferences towards others. In her free time, Isabel loves watching shows, reading fantasy, petting cats, and drinking coffee!
CASSIDY WOLFE
Graduate Student
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Cassidy is a Cognitive Science PhD student working with Dr. Nadia Chernyak. Cassidy completed her M.A. in Developmental Psychology at Cornell University in 2021. She also completed her B.A. in Psychology at Cornell University in 2019.
Cassidy is interested in researching children’s moral cognition and the relationship between wealth and possibility. Cassidy is particularly interested in how cultural markers impact how children process and form decisions, specifically using an intersectional framework to pit cultural markers against each other. In her free time she enjoys playing with her nieces and nephews, drinking coffee, spending time with her cat, and playing Animal Crossing.
Research Assistants
TATI RIOS
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Tati is an undergraduate student pursuing her B.S. in psychology. She is particularly interested in how childhood experiences and mental disorders may affect one's understanding of the social world. She loves working with children and is excited to learn more about cognitive science through a more hands-on approach. In her free time, she enjoys singing along to music, going on walks, and trying new foods :)
LANA ISABEL ABAD
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RA (SURP Recipient)
Lana Isabel Abad is a fourth-year undergraduate student at UCI pursuing a B.S. in Psychology. She is interested in neuropsychology, particularly curious about the underpinnings of brain injuries and cognitive disorders. She hopes to conduct cross-cultural research in this field in the future. In her free time, she dances with UCI's Kaba Modern dance team, and enjoys crocheting, reading, and binging TV shows with her roommates.
MADISON KELLEY LEINGANG
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RA (SURP Recipient)
Madison Leingang is a fourth-year Psych BS major. She is interested in the cognitive development of children and the intersection of psychology and law and has hopes of going to grad school. In her free time, she can be found reading, watching bad reality TV, or looking at pictures of her family dog.
ANGELICA MARIE LAZARO
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I am a fourth-year undergraduate student at UCI pursuing my Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. I am particularly interested in Developmental Psychology and how one's environment and other social influences impact their life trajectories. I love working with children and in the future, I hope to pursue a career in helping children and adolescents from underrepresented population. In my free time, I like catching up with my friends and family, listening to music and watching pretty sunsets.
ELLEN WIDJAJA
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Ellen Widjaja is a fourth year undergraduate student pursuing her Bachelors of Science in Psychology. She is interested in neuropsychology, specifically brain disorders and its effects on behavior, and hopes to go to graduate school in the near future. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family and trying out new cafes and restaurants.
LEZLY CABALLERO
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RA (SURP Recipient)
Lezly is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Psychology. She is interested in how children who stem from a multicultural background differ from their mono-cultural counterparts and the developmental effects of clashing cultures on children's cognitive and esteem development. In her free time, she enjoys journaling, listening to music, and building 3D puzzles.
DIVYA MODGIL
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RA (SURP Recipient)
Divya Modgil is currently pursuing a B.S in psychology and a B.A in education. She aspires to combine the two interests to specialize in doing assessments/therapy with special education students from low SES background.
DIYA NABAR
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Diya is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing her B.S. in Cognitive Sciences at UCI. Diya is interested in how early life experiences shape children's worldview and how their experiences with bi/multilingualism affect social cognition. Her current interests are writing poetry, watching thriller shows, and listening to music 24/7.
CELESTE OCHOA
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Celeste is a fourth-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Biology. She is deeply interested in how childhood experiences and mental health disorders shape an individual’s worldview, perceptions of success, and sense of self-achievement. Her focus also extends to understanding the influence of familial relationships and cultural practices on mental health, particularly within underrepresented groups. She is especially curious about interventions that can promote positive outcomes in at-risk youth and seeks to explore how early exposure to stressors affects biological markers of aging and overall health later in life. In her spare time, Celeste enjoys reading, trying out new coffee shops, rewatching Pride and Prejudice, and hiking.
CLARA TAKAHASHI
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Clara is a second-year currently pursuing her B.A. in Psychological Science at UCI. She is interested in developmental psychology, specifically how children’s behavior develops, and hopes to become a pediatric occupational therapist in the future. In her free time, she dances with UCI’s MCIA dance team and loves trying new food and matcha places with friends.
MAYA MOOKHERJEE AMODT
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Maya is a second year undergraduate student at UCI, currently pursuing her Bachelors in both Psychological Sciences and International Studies. She has a particular interest in how a research based approach to understanding social issues can affect human world views and opinions. In the future, she hopes to conduct cross-cultural research, with a focus in the developmental and social branches of psychology.
WILLIAM HUANG
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William is a 4th year Psych B.S major interested in studying learning, development, and education. He is interested in research regarding the long term cognitive development of children from different cultures and backgrounds and hopes to go to grad school in the future. In his free time he enjoys listening to music, making coffee, and watching shows.
MADISON GARGUILE
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Maddie is a second year Psychology BS major. She is interested in understanding how early life experiences influence who we become and supporting individuals facing mental health challenges. She is planning to go to grad school in the future. In her free time she loves thrifting, going to concerts, and shopping with friends.
MAYA SALAMA
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Maya Salama is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Psychology at UCI. She hopes to continue on to Graduate school and eventually receive a PhD in Psychology. She’s particularly interested in the social behavior and cognition of people throughout their entire lifespan. In her free time, she enjoys working out, running, watching movies, and drinking coffee!
MIKAELA SELBY
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Mikaela is a second-year undergraduate student pursuing her B.S. in Cognitive Science at UCI. She is interested in how early-life adversity affects the cognitive and psychological development of children. Following graduating UCI, Mikaela plans to attend graduate school to study developmental neuropsychology and eventually work in a hospital setting. In her free time Mikaela loves trying out new pilates studios, going to the beach, and cooking in her sorority house.
SHANTAL DEEB
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Shantal is a second-year Psychology B.S. major with an interest in Behavioral Psychology; specifically studying how children's home environments and cultural upbringing impact their behavior. In her free time, Shantal enjoys painting, journaling, and scrapbooking.
NINGYI MA
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Ningyi Ma is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in psychology. She is very interested in developmental psychology, especially studying the behavior and cognition of people of different ages. She is also fascinated by the intersection of biology and psychology, such as studying the pathology of mental disorders. In her spare time, she likes to watch TV shows, go to concerts, and travel around the world.
CINDY TAYAGUA-ABARCA
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Cindy is a third-year undergraduate pursuing a B.S. in Psychology at UCI. She is interested in learning more about ambiguity aversion in children and how this impacts their decision-making. In her spare time, she enjoys being a violinist in the Marachi here at UCI, watching reality TV, trying new food, and taking long walks.
SARAH LEY
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Sarah is pursing a bachelors in Psychology. Her future goals are to either get her PsyD in clinical psychology.
ANNA LE
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Anna is a third year double major in Psych B.S and Biological Sciences with a minor in Humanities Law. She is particularly interested in the development of morality throughout the life stages and the intersection between law and medicine. In the future she hopes to pursue a MD/JD. She loves art, writing, video games (mariokart), and shopping.
JEFFREY ELLIS
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Jeffrey is a third-year Psychology B.S. major. He is interested in studying childhood psychological disorders and the neuroscience behind them. He hopes to attend graduate school after obtaining his Bachelor’s and eventually either conduct research or do therapy (or both). In his free time, he like to play music, go on bike rides, play soccer, and try new restaurants.
DIYA KOCHERRY
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Diya is a second-year Biological Sciences student at UCI with a strong interest in child development. She hopes to attend medical school in the future. She enjoys reading, baking, and spending quality time with family and friends in her free time.
ROGER NGUYEN
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Roger is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing a B.S. in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. He is interested in studying developmental and social psychology, as well as the ways in which experiences with inequality can shape the psychological needs of different marginalized communities. He hopes to pursue a career in clinical psychology with an emphasis in child and adolescent therapy. In his free time, Roger enjoys boba runs, spontaneously rearranging his room, and badly karaoking in his car.
SHUYAN LI
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Shuyan was born in Chongqing, China, and is currently a first-year undergraduate student at UCI pursuing a B.S. in Psychology. She is particularly interested in attachment styles, close relationships, child development, and the behaviors and motivations that shape human interactions. She enjoys and excels at interacting with children, which has inspired her to explore how early experiences influence relationships and development. In the future, she plans to pursue graduate studies and aspires to become a therapist specializing in family, marriage, and parent-child relationships. In her free time, Shuyan enjoys playing the piano, traveling, reading, figure skating, and singing.
AMANDA ZIDRON
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Amanda Zidron is a second-year undergraduate student at UC Irvine pursuing a dual degree in Psychology, B.S. & Sociology. She is interested in social psychology, moral development, as well as the long-term impact of adverse childhood experiences. Amanda plans to continue her education by pursuing a Ph.D. after completing her undergraduate studies in her third year. In her free time, she enjoys crocheting, cooking, journaling, reading, & hiking.
ESTHER JEON
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Esther is a third year Psychology B.S major at UCI. She is particularly interested in studying children’s mental health/trauma and understanding how adverse experiences can affect development and behavior. She loves working with children and plans to go to grad school in the future. In her free time she enjoys playing video games and discovering new music.
HANNAH KWON
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Hannah is a second-year undergraduate student pursuing her B.S. in Psychology at UCI. She is interested in socio-cultural and developmental psychology, especially how coming from first-generation or immigrant backgrounds can affect an individual’s social and mental experiences. In her free time, she enjoys going to cafes with friends, reading, watching movies, golfing, and climbing.
Lab Mascot
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IVY
Lab Cat
Hi, my name is Ivy Elizabeth Wolfe, but you can call me Ivy Cat. I love to eat, play, run and jump! I really really love boxes and paper bags-they are the best! Also my life motto is “closed doors are really only opportunities to find ways to make them open doors, aka by scratching and meowing.
Lab Alumni
Dear wonderful DoSC lab alumni! We'd love to hear from you on what you are up to now. Please consider filling out our alumni form here :)
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Former Research Staff
Lucy Stowe (Lab Manager 2020 - 2022; now Ph.D. student in Developmental Psychology at UC Davis)
Sifana Sohail (Lab Manager 2018 - 2020; now: Ph.D. student in Developmental Psychology at Yale University)
Allegra Midgette (Postdoctoral Collaborator 2019-2021; now: Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University)
Danyang Ma (Project Coordinator 2019 - 2022; now: Ph.D. student in Developmental Psychology at UC Riverside)
Taylor Ashqar (Project Coordinator 2019 - 2023; Master's student in Human Factors at CSU Long Beach)
Jose Ramirez (Project Coordinator 2018 - 2024)
Former Research Assistants