Lindsey Powell 

Principal Investigator  |  ljpowell@ucsd.edu

I study the early development of social cognition and motivation.  How do infants and young children understand others' minds, interactions, and relationships?  What motivates them to attend to and engage with social partners?  How do we develop the abilities to cooperate, communicate, and learn from each other in just the first few years of life? 

Alexis Smith-Flores 

Graduate Student  |  alexis-smith@ucsd.edu

Website 

My research investigates the intersection of socio-emotional development and cognition. Specifically, how does children’s understanding of others’ emotions, and evaluation of social interactions, shape their representations of objects and other agents.

Lauren Smith

Graduate Student  |  l7smith@ucsd.edu

CV

My research examines the effects of social cues on learning in infants with a familial history of autism using behavioral and neural methods. 

Bill Pepe 

Graduate Student  |  wpepe@ucsd.edu

My research examines how children identify people as being affiliated and/or belonging to a group, as well as the resultant attitudes and beliefs they express regarding affiliated dyads, and in/out-group members. 

Wenhao (James) Qi

Graduate Student  |  wqi@ucsd.edu

Website

I’m a fifth-year graduate student in Psychology. My long-term research goal is to build human-like machines. My current research studies how people make welfare tradeoffs with other people. I’m starting to transition to work on inductive program synthesis. I completed my undergraduate degree in Automation at Tsinghua University in China.

Kexin (Coxi) Jiang

Graduate Student  |  k3liang@ucsd.edu

My research examines infants’ ability to track social interactions. I am currently focusing on how past interactions shape their expectations about whether a partner is likely to reciprocate in the future.

Rodney Tompkins

Graduate Student Affiliate  |  rtompkins@ucsd.edu

Website

I am broadly interested in social cognitive development, or how young humans think about and navigate the social world. My current research in the lab aims to characterize children's concepts and evaluations of protectors and protective behaviors.

Sohee Ahn

Graduate Student Affiliate  |  sahn@ucsd.edu

I am interested in how children construct models of self, others, and their relationships. My current research focuses on whether toddlers and young children understand and respect others' desire for autonomy (e.g., do children recognize when someone wants to do something on their own? If so, can they respect this desire by withholding help?). I plan to continue exploring how this understanding of autonomy shapes their conception of inter-agent relationships early in life.

Tori Hennessy

Graduate Student Affiliate  |  vhennessy@ucsd.edu

My research examines how children actively shape their own learning in social and non-social contexts during early cognitive development. Currently, I’m exploring the influence of children’s individual interests on language production and knowledge.

Nico Navarro

I am a Fourth Year undergraduate student majoring in Clinical Psychology and minoring in Global Health. I am interested in childhood psychological development, especially how children perceive various activities, people and cultures. Outside of school, I like reading, getting lost in San Diego, binging tv shows and spending time with my friends. 

Carlos Aguilar

My research interests are on neural development hindrances and more specifically embryology with the development of the central nervous system  involving the spina bifida, anencephaly, and encephalocele.

Something About Me: I have suffered from severe migraines since I was a child, and since then, I have pursued neuroscience research to understand neurological disorders and diseases in children. Aside from studying neuroscience, I am a Wellness Peer Educator, play club water polo at UCSD, play the electric guitar, and enjoy cooking.

Shyla Sullivan

Hi! I'm a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Human Developmental Sciences and Psychology. I am passionate about studying cognitive and social development in children and interested in how they perceive the world and interact with others. In my free time, I enjoy watching the sunset, discovering new music to add to my many playlists, and going thrifting with my friends!

Angelina Borrero

Hello! My name is Angelina and I am currently a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology with a specialization in Clinical Psychology! Plus a minor in Global Health. I am interested in the ways children establish relationships and interact with the always-changing world around them. After undergrad, I hope to pursue a PhD and work with children in a clinical environment! Outside of academics, I enjoy going to concerts with friends, cafe hopping, and collecting stationery. 

Eliana Mejia

Hello! I am a Third Year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology and am interested in child development; specifically how children learn to navigate social interactions. In my free time, I enjoy reading and exploring new parts of the city with friends! 

Makena Weber

Hi! My name is Makena and I’m a third-year student here at UCSD majoring in clinical psychology with a minor in biology. I’m passionate about how children learn and how their minds develop from a young age and am interested in how certain events provoke that development. I’m from Seattle and in my free time I like to run and go hiking and camping.

Katherine Liang

Hi! I'm a second year undergraduate student majoring in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience. I am interested in studying how cognitive and social development in children are affected by their upbringing and environment. In my free time, I love walking along the beach and hiking nature trails, followed by cafe hopping in La Jolla and exploring the city!

Hayley Gamboa

I’m a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in psychology with a specialization in human health, along with a minor in American Sign Language. I’m passionate about studying children and how they process the environment around them. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, reading, and spending time with loved ones.

Ciara Murman

Hi! My name is Ciara and I am a third-year clinical psychology major. I am interested in child development (specifically how infants and children learn and how their brains develop). I hope to become a licensed psychologist and work with children. In my free time, I go to concerts and the beach with friends and attempt to read.

Elizabeth Granados

Hi! I’m a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology. I am interested in the development of children’s social cognition and how they interact with the world. In my free time, I enjoy running, crocheting, and spending time with family and friends!

Jillian Escalante

Hello! I am a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Social Psychology with a minor in Human Developmental Sciences. I am very interested in learning about children’s social development and how they come to understand the world. In my free time, I love reading, going to the beach, and attending concerts with friends!

Rose Laureta

Hi! I’m Rose and I am an undergraduate transfer student! I am passionate about children’s development and how children learn and reason about the world. Specifically, I am interested in how certain daily social interactions affect a child’s mind and behavior. In my free time, I like to read, explore new areas of SD with friends, visit the beach, and cook/bake! After undergrad, I hope to pursue either a Master’s degree to become a LCSW or a PsyD to become a licensed clinical psychologist and hope to work with children in either field.

Samin Islam

Hello, I am a fifth-year undergraduate student double majoring in global health and psychology with a specialization in human health. I am interested in learning about human behavior and how different factors contribute to health outcomes. I am passionate about working with kids and aim to be a well-balanced physician one day. Outside of academics, I am a medication technician and I love cooking new dishes for my friends to try.

Nicole Sahrling

Hello! I'm a third year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology with a specialization in Developmental Psychology, as well as a minor in International Studies. I'm broadly interested in how children's minds are impacted by their social and cultural environments, and how we can create a more child-friendly world. In my free time, I love to explore new cafes, dance, and travel.

Shrishti Banga

Hello! I am a second-year undergraduate student majoring in psychology and am interested in studying the cognitive and social development of children. Specifically, I want to understand how children perceive their interpersonal relationships and navigate concepts such as communication, competition, or trust at such a young age. I also plan to pursue a PhD after my undergraduate. Apart from academics, I really enjoy dancing, exploring new places with my friends, and playing the piano!

Katherine Kim

Hello! My name is Katherine Kim and I am currently a first-year undergraduate psychology student. My academic curiosity is primarily focused on the developmental aspects of children's brains, aiming to gain a deeper understanding of academic success strategies, especially for those facing learning disabilities. In my free time, I enjoy running, cooking, matcha lattes, spending time with friends and family, and shopping.

Ethan Gurevich

Hello, my name is Ethan and I am a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in cognitive behavioral neuroscience. I'm interested in which chemicals in our brains correlate to certain emotions. I love working with children and aspire to merge my interests in working with children and cognitive science. In my free time, I like to tour and write music with my band and travelling as much as I can.

Kayla Wu

Hey y’all! I’m a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Clinical Psychology and minoring Ethnic Studies. I am interested in learning about the way children perceive social interactions and relationships. Outside of lab and school, you can find me working out or running, hanging out with my friends, or watching anime!