I am a fifth-year PhD student in clinical psychology at Duke University, where I also received my MA in clinical psychology in 2023. I work with Dr. Michael S. Gaffrey, PhD, who recently moved to Children’s Wisconsin and the Medical College of Wisconsin. I was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in 2021. Prior to Duke, I graduated with a BA in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2018. I was the first in my family to go to college. At Penn, I worked with Drs. Robert T. Schultz, PhD, and Ashley de Marchena, PhD (Center for Autism Research, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia), and Dr. Dianne L. Chambless, PhD (Department of Psychology). Following, I completed the Sara S. Sparrow Fellowship in Clinical Neuroscience at Yale University from 2018 to 2020 under the mentorship of Dr. James C. McPartland (Child Study Center, School of Medicine).

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Broadly, I study the spatial and temporal dynamics of brain activity during infancy and early childhood to improve understanding of the biological pathways through which early experiences shape and/or are shaped by social, emotional, and cognitive development during windows of heightened brain plasticity. Toward this end, I use EEG microstate analysis to identify patterns of scalp potential topographies that are stable in spatial location for very short periods of time and reflect rapidly evolving states of synchronized activity in the brain. I also have a strong interest in evaluating and improving information gleaned from EEG microstate analysis to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the developing brain. I collaborate closely with Dr. Christoph M. Michel, PhD, and Denis Brunet, MSc, at the University of Geneva and Center for Biomedical Imaging in Switzerland. Further, I use dyadic, head-mounted eye tracking technology to understand how infants and young children learn in the real-world (e.g., how they learn to exert control over their own attention). Together, EEG and eye tracking methods allow me to explore how brain activity and early learning experiences interact to shape developmental outcomes, and examine the role that caregivers play. Ultimately, I hope for my research to inform ways that caregivers and policymakers can capitalize on windows of heightened brain plasticity to ensure that all children have a fair and healthy start in life.

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I am also a clinician, trained in evidence-based practices. Specifically, I provide cognitive-behavioral therapy to children and adolescents with mental health needs. I especially enjoy working with children with anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and chronic pain. I have experience in parent training, too. In therapy, I strive to empower children and their families by helping them discover how they can face their biggest fears and cope with challenges. In addition to therapy, I perform diagnostic, developmental, and neuropsychological assessments. In this role, I work primarily with children and adolescents with brain tumors or Leukemia as well as infants born early or who have experienced complications as a newborn and are at increased risk for ongoing medical and developmental problems. I also provide comprehensive autism evaluations. Overall, I take a comprehensive, collaborative, and strengths-based approach with cultural competency and humility in all of my clinical work. I am very fortunate to have been supervised by Drs. Christian F. Mauro, PhD, Melanie J. Bonner, PhD, Erin B. Denio, PhD, Sarah R. O’Rourke, PhD, Kathryn E. Gustafson, PhD, and Jill E. Howard, PhD, at Duke, to name a few of my role models.

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Besides science and clinical work, I love to cook, bake, and drink lots of coffee. I also enjoy going to boxing and indoor cycle classes. I am a proud Armenian-American.