Our Team
Manager, Research Portfolio
Working closely with both Drs. Chris and Aislin Mushquash, Dr. Bel supports both the operational and administrative sides of the research program and helps keep our projects running smoothly, making sure our research continues to support community wellness. Dr. Bel supports team operations by assisting with hiring, onboarding, training, and long-term planning, managing project logistics, coordinating research activities, identifying funding opportunities and preparing applications and reports. Her role also includes analyzing qualitative and quantitative data, creating visual summaries, and helping to share the group’s findings through reports, articles, presentations, and knowledge translation events.
Dr. Bel joins the team as a four-time Lakehead Alumn having graduated with an HBSc in Applied Bio-Molecular Science, an MBA, an MSc in Biology, and a PhD in Medical Biotechnology. With an array of experiences in the research world, including supporting research operations and grant administration Lakehead University, Dr. Bel is excited to support the important work of Dr. Mushquash’s research group!
In her free time, Jocelyn enjoys spending time with her family and two dogs.
Senior Research Coordinator
Steve is the Senior Research Coordinator for the Help in Hand project at the Coping Lab. Before accepting this role, he completed his Master of Science in Psychiatry Research at Dalhousie University. His thesis work was supported by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) CGS-M award and investigated the relationship between speech-derived repetitive negative thinking and objectively-measured physical activity in adults with mood disorders. Steve has also worked as a behavioural therapist for children and adolescents with ADHD and/or Autism.
Steve is primarily interested in studying psychotherapeutic interventions for mood and anxiety disorders and hopes to become a clinical psychologist.
Outside of the lab, he enjoys (short) hikes, dystopian fiction, and squinting at the sun while his fiancée is trying to take a photo of him.
Senior Research Associate
Emily is the Senior Research Associate for Dr. Aislin Mushquash's research portfolio. As a two-time Lakehead University Alumni and a strong background in academic administration, research coordination, and teaching, Emily plays a central role in driving research progress by coordinating activities, supporting project teams, and ensuring timelines and deliverables stay on track across multiple initiatives. She is passionate about supporting students and advancing impactful research through collaboration, mentorship, and inclusive evidence-informed practice.
Emily is excited to contribute to the advancement of Dr. Mushquash's research projects by helping to maintain momentum and fostering collaboration across teams. With a Master’s degree in Education and a specialization in Gender and Women’s Studies, Emily brings a thoughtful and strategic approach to her work, with a strong commitment to creating supportive and collaborative spaces where learning, teaching, and research can flourish.
Outside of work, Emily spends her time playing with her (very busy) toddler and baking new flavours of focaccia bread.
Research/Laboratory Coordinator
Sydney (she/her) joined Dr. Aislin Mushquash’s research program as the Research Coordinator in February 2026. She is a Lakehead University alumni and graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in 2020. Before moving into research coordination, she spent three years working in a clinical setting providing ABA therapy for children with Autism. This clinical background sparked her interest in the research process and led me to my current role at Lakehead.
As the Research Coordinator, she manages the daily operations and administrative needs of the lab. Her responsibilities include coordinating large scale professional engagements, managing schedules, and maintaining CVs and publication records. She also supports the lab’s team of researchers to ensure that community-led initiatives and academic projects run smoothly.
Beyond my administrative role, she is actively expanding her research experience. She is currently contributing to multiple scoping reviews for the grad students in this lab. Having grown up in a city with a large Indigenous population, she is grateful for the opportunity to deepen her understanding of Indigenous cultures and wellness through the lab's community focused work.
Outside of the lab, Sydney makes most of the long Thunder Bay winters by skiing. During the warmer months, she enjoys hiking and exploring the local nature. She also has an interest in rowing and hopes to join a team in the future. She is a major fan of all things spooky and loves watching horror movies, with Halloween being her favourite time of year.
PhD Students
Angela (She/her) began the Ph.D. program in Clinical Psychology at Lakehead University in 2025. Her research focuses on the role of digital mHealth tools in promoting youth and family mental health, emotion co-regulation, and coping. Prior to this, she also completed her MA in Clinical Psychology at Lakehead University under the supervision of Dr. Mushquash. Her MA research focused on implementing and assessing the impact of a resilience-building and coping mHealth app, JoyPop, as an adjunct tool for youth clients receiving mental health services. Her research has been supported through CGS-M CIHR funding, and she is a Fellow with The Digital, Inclusive, Virtual, and Equitable Research Training in Mental Health Platform (DIVERT Mental Health). For 5 years, Angela also worked with individuals with developmental disabilities as a support worker. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking/baking new recipes, reading, and rock climbing!
Jaidyn began her PhD in Clinical Psychology in September 2024. Prior to this, she completed her HBA in 2021 and MA in 2024, all supervised by Dr. Mushquash at Lakehead University. Jaidyn’s dissertation is a multimethod examination of how emerging adults use social media to cope with daily stressors. This doctoral research is currently supported by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) – Doctoral Fellowship and a SSHRC Insight Grant. She has previously been supported by a SSHRC Canada Graduate Master’s Scholarship and an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. She has research experience examining the Dark Triad personality traits (for her MA), emotion regulation, the JoyPop app, Indigenous mental health, and more. Outside of academia, Jaidyn is an avid reader and writer, enjoys alternative and hard rock, and her clinical interests are in forensics/corrections, trauma, and psychosis.
Izzy is a third-year PhD student in the Clinical Psychology program at Lakehead University. His research focuses on evaluating innovative e-mental health interventions, including mobile apps and generative artificial intelligence chatbots, as well as understanding broader patterns of online behaviour and digital well-being. He is also interested in addiction recovery, peer support and mutual-help programs, personality-matched interventions, and how individual differences shape engagement with digital technologies over time. His emerging neuroimaging research also examines how generative AI use and cognitive offloading may relate to brain systems involved in memory and executive functioning.
His current work includes a pilot/feasibility trial evaluating ChatGPT as a tool to support postsecondary student emotion regulation and a longitudinal study examining problematic social media use, online gaming, and sports betting among Canadian adults.
Izzy is a Fellow of the Digital, Inclusive, Virtual, and Equitable Research Training (DIVERT) in Mental Health Platform. Alongside his research, he is passionate about clinical work, supervision, and mentoring undergraduate students. Outside of academia, he is an avid tennis and basketball player and enjoys spending time with his partner, his Westie Winnie, and family.
Angela began the PhD program in Clinical Psychology at Lakehead University in 2020. Prior to that, she also completed her Master’s degree under the supervision of Dr. Mushquash. Her MA thesis examined the benefits of journaling using a smartphone app, and she has also been involved in evaluating this smartphone app as a resilience-promoting tool more generally. Her doctoral research focuses on victimhood as a personality trait and its relationship to perceptions of trauma, daily interpersonal stress, and PTSD symptoms. She is also interested in teaching and has taught PSYC-3018 - Psychological Disorders in Adulthood at the undergraduate level. Angela’s graduate studies are supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. She has previously been supported by the Ontario Graduate Scholarship.
Vamika began the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program at Lakehead University in 2022. Her area of research involves investigating the effectiveness of a mental health and well-being-focused smartphone app for emerging adults. Vamika completed her Master’s in Clinical Psychology at Lakehead University in 2022. Her Master’s thesis focused on the role of stress and coping in the relationship between childhood adversity and alcohol outcomes among emerging adults. The Ontario Graduate Scholarship supports Vamika’s current graduate studies. Her work has previously been funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Ontario Graduate Scholarship. Vamika has clinical experience in psychoeducational assessments with children and youth and assessment and intervention with adults.
MA Students
Kati (she/her) joined the MA Clinical Psychology program at Lakehead University in 2025. She completed an Honours BSc in Psychology at Memorial University of Newfoundland in 2024. Her MA thesis will examine whether social media use functions as an effective coping mechanism for acute stress recovery, and whether its effectiveness depends on active versus passive use. She is currently supported by the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and was recently appointed as a general committee member on the CPA's Section for Students in Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Kati's other research interests include the evaluation and effective implementation of digital mental health tools, the role of peer support in chronic pain, and the transdiagnostic applicability of DBT. Outside of academics, Kati enjoys making collages, playing board and video games, and spending time with her cat, Wiggler.
Amy joined the MA Clinical Psychology Program at Lakehead University in 2024 and is set to start her PhD in September 2026. She completed an Honours BSc specializing in Psychology at York University in 2021. Her MA thesis is examining Canadian educators’ (K-12) acceptance to use digital mental health tools inside and outside of the classroom. Amy was awarded the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR)- Canada Graduate Master’s Scholarship in 2025 and the St. Joseph’s Care Group Award in Applied Health Research. She has previously been supported by the Ontario Graduate Scholarship. She is currently involved in the online behaviour study and Help in Hand grant in the lab. Amy’s other research interests include, emotion regulation, chronic pain, adolescent and young adult mental health, and maternal health. In her spare time, Amy loves to read novels, crochet, bike ride, go to concerts, and foster cats!
Teagan Neufeld is a graduate student in the Master of Arts Clinical Psychology program at Lakehead University. She is of mixed Indigenous and European Settler ancestry, including Métis and Finn. Her research focuses on evaluating and integrating digital mHealth tools to improve the health and well-being of the People of Northwestern Ontario. Her current research examines the acceptance of the Aaniish Naa Gegii: The Children's Health and Well-being Measure (ACHWM) amongst Indigenous post-secondary students as a culturally relevant tool. Additionally, Teagan contributes to the JoyPop™ Randomized Control Trial with Dilico Anishinabek Child and Family Services project. Throughout her Master's research, Teagan has been supported by the SSHRC Indigenous Scholars and Supplement Award, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, and a stipend from the ACHWM research team. In her spare time, she enjoys fishing, practicing yoga, and creating art using a variety of mixed media, including digital illustration and beadwork.
Undergraduate Students
Brooklyn is in her fourth year of HBSc Psych and Bed, and is completing her undergraduate Honours Thesis with Dr. Aislin Mushquash and co-supervisor Ishaq Malik this 2025/2026 academic year. She started as a research assistant doing qualitative coding for research from Children’s Centre Thunder Bay during the 2024/2025 academic year. Her research interests include personality traits, emotion regulation, ACEs, gambling motives, and problem online sports betting. Brooklyn has lots of other practical experiences, including a research opportunity course in Dr. James Kryklywy's lab, Psi-Chi membership, volunteering for Let's Talk Science, and is currently the President of Lakehead University's Women in Sports Association (WISA.) Outside of work and school, Brooklyn enjoys hiking, dancing, and playing piano.