Mind and Development Lab

Researcher Spotlight! Meet our research assistant, Jeanne:

Jeanne is a senior at Pomona College, where she studies cognitive science, neuroscience, and art. Broadly and incompletely, her interests revolve around decision-making and consciousness theory—lately, she’s been particularly interested in how empathy is operationalized. At Pomona, she works at the campus library and as an editor for the Claremont Journal for Medicine & Social Justice. When she’s not at the library or trying to catch up on sleep, Jeanne enjoys hiking, trying to keep her plants from falling victim to an untimely demise, and playing with her cat, Enzo

Researcher Spotlight! Meet one of our new research assistants, Honor!

Honor is a junior in Saybrook college majoring in Psychology from London, England. She is interested in developmental psychopathology and the development of morality. Outside of the lab, Honor is the Head of Communications for City Help with COVID, an organization that connects college student volunteers with local nonprofits. In her free time, she likes to read, binge TV, and pat any dog she can find.

Thank you to our summer interns: Nathan, Evelyn, Carly, Grace, Xavier, Mark and Pragya for your help! Our research wouldn't be possible without them!

RESEARCHER SPOTLIGHT🔎 Meet Grace, a rising third-year undergraduate summer intern from Queen's University in Canada! 🇨🇦 Grace is interested in aspects of social psychology that explore what might motivate humans to do or be “good”, including empathy, morality, altruism, and more. She is so excited and grateful to be interning at a lab that studies these topics! This summer, she is working with one of the lab's graduate students, Gracie. Outside of the lab, Grace likes to write music and read.

RESEARCHER SPOTLIGHT 🔎Meet Carly, a rising fourth-year undergraduate summer intern from the University of Alabama at Birmingham! Carly is interested in philosophy and psychology with specific interests in morality. Her previous lab experience involved studying the neural correlates of learning, memory, and emotion. This summer, she is working with one of the lab's graduate students, Gracie. Outside of the lab, Carly loves to rock climb & knit!

RESEARCHER SPOTLIGHT 🔎Meet Mark, a rising third-year undergraduate summer intern from the University of Notre Dame! Mark is interested in child psychology with respect to moral cognition and changes throughout adolescence. This summer, he is working with the lab's postdoc Matti Wilks. Outside of the lab, Mark is also broadly invested in healthcare culture, and wildlife conservation and coexistence in the Anthropocene. He enjoys hiking, kayaking, and biking in his free time.

RESEARCHER SPOTLIGHT 🔎 Meet Nathan, a fourth-year undergraduate summer research assistant from Duke University here in the Elephant Lab! Nathan is currently studying dehumanization with Emily, our fourth-year graduate student, and is broadly interested in moral psychology and philosophy as well as religiosity. He has a cognitive background in memory, imagination, and creativity, and seeks to integrate these diverse interests in his future research. Outside of the lab, Nathan can usually be spotted playing soccer or watching a good movie.

More summer opportunities at Yale!☀️ Applications are due April 17, 2020. Friendly reminder that if you are interested in working with us this summer from June- August, Applications are due March 20, 2020. Email us at [email protected] if you want information on how to apply!

The Mind & Development Lab visits New Orleans! Our researchers: Emily, Gracie, Matti, & Alexa presented research projects from our lab at SPSP, the Society for Philosophy and Social Psychology, and got to learn about new research in the field!

Thank you so much to Assumption Catholic School for allowing us to come back and work with the students there! Maintaining a relationship with our local schools is very important to us. 😊 Check out the school here: https://www.assumptionfairfield.org/

The Mind and Development Lab at Yale University is now accepting applications for our annual Summer Internship Program. Our research explores how children and adults understand the physical and social world, including topics such as morality, religion, free will, and the nature of the self.

The internship is open to all undergraduate students, those graduating in 2020, and recent college graduates. It is particularly suited for students considering graduate school in experimental psychology or cognitive science.

If you are interested in applying, please email: [email protected] or check out our website: https://minddevlab.yale.edu/join-us