Postdoctoral Fellows

Jessica Mettler

Graduate Students

Rosanne V. Krajden

Rosanne is a PhD student in Clinical Psychology. She has a BA Honours in Psychology from Concordia University and an MSc in Psychiatry from McGill University. Her research focuses on emerging adult’s well-being and functioning, more specifically as it relates to their identity development.

Rosanne’s tip for managing stress in university: As a busy graduate student, she recommends managing your stress by creating (and sticking to!) a self-care routine. When her long days are over, she lights up candles, takes out her yoga mat, and stretches out while listening to a favorite podcast.

Victoria Lane

Victoria began working with Dr. Barker as an undergraduate thesis student, continued as a summer CUSRA student, and then led the Student Well-Being Project for one year as project coordinator. She is currently a PhD student in Clinical Psychology. Generally, she is interested in models of risk and resilience in the transition to adulthood. Her research will focus on barriers to mental health help-seeking in at-risk university students. Clinically, she is interested in working with adults and is completing an internship at St. Mary’s Hospital.

Jessica Spoor

Jessica has a BA Honours in Psychology from Concordia University. She is currently an MA student in Psychology in the research stream. Her research focuses on the challenges and barriers that student parents in higher education experience and how it affects their well-being. She is particularly interested in role strain and its impact on personal and academic domains. Jessica believes in education equity and hopes her work will inform policies to support future student parents. 

Jessica's tips for managing stress in university: As a student parent, Jessica recommends taking a half day or full day to yourself every week or every other week, doing something that isn't school or child-related. In balancing multiple roles between family, school, and possibly work, we often neglect our individual needs and don't engage in activities or hobbies that help us decompress and restore balance. 

Honours & Specialization Students

Christina Bertachas

Honours Student

Christina is in her fourth year of Honours Psychology at Concordia University, minoring in multidisciplinary topics in science. She has been a part of the Lifespan Well-Being Laboratory since August 2024. Her honours project focuses on the relation between extracurricular activity participation and well-being in young adults graduating from university and transitioning into the workforce. Christina is interested in completing graduate school in Research and Clinical Psychology. One of her goals is to make mental health services less stigmatized and more accessible, fostering increased well-being and mental health.

Jenelle Blumer

Specialization Student

Jenelle is in her final year of Psychology Specialization at Concordia University. She became a member of the Lifespan Well-Being lab in fall of 2024. She is also a volunteer at the Center of Arts in Human Development (CAHD). Her thesis research will focus on exploring which narrative identity processes are associated with better patterns of adjustment across the university graduation transition. Jenelle is interested in pursuing graduate studies in clinical or industrial/organizational psychology, and is primarily interested in helping individuals or organizations improve communication, build connections and enhance overall well-being.

Adriana Mastromonaco

Specialization Student

Adriana is in her final year of Psychology Specialization at Concordia university, with an elective group of health and lifestyle. She has been part of the Lifespan Well-Being Laboratory since Fall 2024. Her specialization thesis focuses on emerging adults’ emotion differentiation skills in relation to facing unprecedented life stressors, specifically the COVID-19 pandemic. Adriana is interested in pursuing graduate studies in Counselling or School Psychology. With her primary interest in helping those undergoing developmental challenges, Adriana hopes to help the lives of children and young adults to build their personal goals, sense of self, and improve their overall well-being.

Staff

Alexandra Borrelli

Research Assistant

Alexandra recently completed a Specialization in Psychology and a minor in Human Relations at Concordia University. She wrote her thesis as part of Dr. Erin Barker's Lifespan Well-Being Laboratory, examining how Concordia students describe academic and time management stressors in hopes of better informing stress-management interventions. Alexandra aims to pursue clinical work with families and couples, with a particular interest in the child welfare system and fostering healthy and harmonious relationships for the well-being of children and youth. During her gap year, she will continue to work for the Department of Youth Protection, Concordia’s Sexual Assault Resource Centre as well as conduct research for Concordia’s Lifespan Well-Being Lab and McGill’s Centre for Research on Children and Families. 

Volunteers