Research Overview
We are an eclectic group with many projects happening and lots of different interests. Click on any image below to learn more about active project and studies. Most of the projects listed below included student RAs from faculties all over campus - Science, FAHSS, HK, Nursing and Business! If any of these pique your interest, consider joining our team. Our group maintains active collaborations with faculty and students in Science, Nursing, and other professors in FAHSS.
Current projects include:
- sexual health and wellbeing in 2S/TNB adults,
- resilience in women diagnosed with endometriosis, and
- gender identity and resilience in drag performers
Sexual Resilience
Past projects include:
- representations of "great sex" in lifestyle magazines,
- depictions of sexual scripts and orgasms in contemporary romance novels, and
- Final Girls and victims in Slasher movies
Current projects include:
- representations of sexually explicit behaviour in Sex and the City, The L Word and their revivals, and
- sexual behaviours and communication in YA novels aimed at LGBTQ+ readers
Representations of Sex and Sexuality in the Media
Archived Projects
Projects described here are either temporarily or permanently on hiatus; no data is being collected at this time. Prospective graduate or undergraduate students who are interested in doing research on these topics are advised to apply to other labs.
Mental Health and Wellbeing in Science Students
This work was started as part of the Sci of Relief program in the Faculty of Sciences in collaboration with Dr. Chris Houser (Earth and Environmental Sciences) and Dr. Dora Cavallo-Medved (Biomedical Sciences). Projects in this area include a survey administered to students, faculty and staff about levels of and contributors to stress, use of support programs, and ideas for improvements to the Faculty.
The Imposter Phenomenon
This work was initiated by a transdisciplinary team from FAHSS, Science, and HK including Ms. Michelle Bondy and Dr. Dora Medved-Cavallo. In October 2019, we surveyed students, staff, and faculty about their experiences of the Impostor Phenomenon in academic settings. We received over 1400+ responses from students and 150+ from staff and faculty. This survey generated over 800 descriptions of how participants felt in those moments.
Data from this project has helped to inform the delivery of monthly workshops by our team to undergraduate and graduate students on campus as well as staff and faculty.
This work was funded by a Centred on Learning and Innovation Fund (CLIF) grant from the Centre for Teaching and Learning.
Academic Lab Safety
Despite the regular occurrence of accidents resulting in personal injuries, property damage, and even deaths, little is known about the causes or impact of academic lab accidents. In collaboration with Dr. Trant (Chemistry/Biochemistry), we wrote a review on the subject that was published in Nature Chemistry and was downloaded 25,000+ times in the first two months of its publication.
Read a CBC interview about the article.
During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (May/June 2020), with Dr. Jody Ralph (Nursing), Dr. Laurie Freeman (Nursing), and Dr. Kendall Soucie (Psychology), we interviewed 36 Registered Nurses living in Canada and working in American or Canadian hospitals.
You can learn more details about this project here.