CLINICAL PROFESSOR OF PSYCHOLOGY IN PSYCHIATRY
Columbia University Medical Center
Spotlight on Lab Alumni
Claire Rodgers, Psy.D.
Working in Dr. Beebe's lab was my first introduction to the power of mutual regulation between two people interacting. It is one thing to abstractly conceptualize "attunement" in a clinical setting; it is quite another to see it in action. Dr. Beebe's microanalyses of mother-infant interactions allow us, the viewer, to witness the transformative blossoming that can occur in a relationship when two people closely observe each other and respond accordingly, in a "good enough" manner, in what Dr Beebe calls “the optimal midrange.” The value that this knowledge adds to my clinical practice cannot be overstated; The power of noticing a patient's glance, or a picking at the fingernails, and the patient's own sense of the therapist's knowing and seeing. This subtle mutuality enhances and enriches the relationships that I am able to have with my patients.
Katherine McKane | Research Assistant - Coder
Katherine received her BA in Liberal Arts concentrating in Chemistry and Psychology from Sarah Lawrence College in May 2023. After graduating, Katherine worked in Dr. Flyak's Lab in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Cornell University as a Laboratory Technician, maintaining their cell line. She has also previously worked as a Lead Coach for her local swim club working with children of all ages, and was a volunteer Teaching Assistant at Sarah Lawrence College's Early Childhood Development Center in their 4/5s classroom and their 2s classroom. These combined experiences have solidified that Katherine both enjoys conducting research and also loves working closely with children on an individual level that aids in their development. Katherine is currently pursuing her MA in Clinical Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. She joins Dr. Beebe's Lab as a coder and is excited to learn more about mother-infant communication and statistics. In the future, she hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.
Olivia Marsh | Lab Manager
Olivia graduated from The New School with a degree in Psychology in 2023. She spent three years working in the Childhood Attachment Lab at The New School, where she spent her time coding Reflective Functioning, analyzing data on how extreme poverty impacts child development and parental bonding. Before working with Dr. Beebe, Olivia worked as a Facilitator at The Motherhood Center, a part-time hospitalization program for mothers with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. She plans to pursue a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology after her 2 years in Dr. Beebe’s lab, and use her experience with the mother-infant dyad to go into reproductive psychology.
.
Joe Zhao | Research Assistant - Vocal Rhythm
Joe is currently a second-year Master's student at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is pursuing a degree in Clinical Psychology after earning his B.S. in Education at UC San Diego. He has experience working with children in multiple settings, including classrooms, summer camps, etc. He joins Dr. Beebe’s lab as a vocal rhythm coder and hopes to learn more about mother-infant communication and attachment. In the future, he hopes to help children who struggle with their emotional regulation. In his free time, he enjoys watching Real Madrid, hanging out with friends, and playing soccer.
Sutapa Goswami | Research Assistant - Statistics Team Lead
Sutapa Goswami is an M.A. student in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology (Honors) from the University of Delhi, on the Principal’s Honor Roll. Sutapa currently leads the Statistics Team in Dr. Beebe’s Lab, where she oversees the lab’s microanalysis datasets and conducts inter-rater reliability testing on SPSS. In this role, she coordinates closely with the Coding and Media Teams, supports coder training, and works with Dr. Beebe and the lab statistician on multi-level time-series analyses examining how maternal risk and prenatal environmental exposures relate to early mother–infant interaction patterns and infant outcomes. Sutapa is particularly curious about early childhood adversity and how early caregiving environments shape neurobiological and socio-emotional trajectories of risk and resilience. She hopes to pursue these interests through a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and eventually integrate her research into culturally grounded, trauma-informed clinical practice. In her free time, she loves learning new languages, dancing, reading philosophy, and watching docu-series on a variety of topics.
Angelo Wei | Research Assistant - Coder
Angel Wei is a Master's student in the Clinical Psychology program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Previously, she earned a double degree in Music Therapy and Performance from Berklee College of Music. She completed her music therapy internship at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, where she gained valuable experience in family-centered therapeutic communication and child development. She has a particular interest in exploring the intersections of therapeutic communication, mother-infant bonding, and social development, aiming to deepen her understanding of attachment and developmental processes through the study of mother-infant interactions. In the future, she hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, studying the impact of early communication patterns and attachment on lifelong mental health and social outcomes.
Ashley Cortes | Research Assistant - Coder, Filming Team
Ashley is a Master's student in the Psychology in Education program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Previously she received a Bachelor's degree in Cognitive Science from University of Connecticut. Ashley was a research assistant for the Swaddling Ear to Ear program. She provided individualized resources for English and Spanish speaking families with children that are Deaf/Hard of Hearing about Connecticut’s Early Hearing Detection and Intervention program to make educated decisions regarding available services and care options. In addition to her work on Dr. Beebe's coding team, Ashley is a volunteer Believe New York Client Advocate. She supports and connects individuals and families in NYC (and beyond) to resources that will best fit their needs. She facilitates weekly checks in to ensure they are moving forward in their goals, ensures the resources provided are improving their situation, and the client is on track to improve their goals. In the future, Ashley intends to pursue a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology and plans to use her experience in Dr. Beebe’s lab to work with young children and their mothers.
Ivy Liu | Research Assistant - Coder
Ivy earned her B.S. in Psychology from Indiana University Bloomington and is currently pursuing an M.A. in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. As an undergraduate, she worked as a research assistant in Dr. Linda Smith’s Cognitive Development Lab, where she studied mother-infant interactions during toy-play sessions. Her honors thesis explored the impact of parental scaffolding on infants' learning outcomes. Ivy joins Dr. Beebe’s lab as a mother touch coder. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, focusing on mood disorders, emotion regulation, and psychopathology. In her free time, she enjoys reading and dancing.
Saba Malik | Project Coordinator
Saba is currently a Clinical Psychology Master's student at Teacher's College, Columbia University and joined Dr. Beebe's lab during fall of 2024 as the Project Coordinator. In May of 2023, she earned her B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience at the University of Maryland. After graduation, she worked as a Research Assistant researching first-episode psychosis at Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine in Baltimore. Saba's current research interests are perinatal mental health and how postpartum depression or psychosis can affect attachment of mothers and babies. She has grown a strong interest in maternal health and is excited to be working with new mothers, and is excited to be working with Dr. Beebe and her amazing research team. Saba plans on continuing her research interests by pursuing a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology in the future.
Julia Peralta | Research Assistant - Coder, Filming Team
Julia is a master's student in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She earned her B.S. in Biology and Psychology from Texas A&M University in 2022. After graduating, she worked as a research assistant at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, contributing to two projects: one bringing STEM programs to low-income elementary schools to increase STEM interest and challenge gender stereotypes, and another developing evidence-based practices to improve children’s oral language skills. Her research interests include mother-child interactions, socioemotional development, and early childhood psychopathology, with attention to multicultural contexts. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, focusing on perinatal and child mental health within marginalized, particularly Latine, communities.
Pau Ortells Faci | Lab Coordinator – R01 Grant Coordinator
Pau joined Dr. Beebe’s lab in the fall of 2022 and is currently the project coordinator for the R01 grant “Prenatal Toxins and Social Risk in Mothers and Infants.” He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology with a degree in technical design in May of 2022 and made a significant career shift by deciding to leave the fashion industry to pursue a path in psychology. Since then, he has gained experience working with families and young children as a preschool teacher and as a research assistant at Dr. Kim Noble’s lab. He is eager to continue to work directly with mothers and their infants at Dr. Beebe’s lab, and better understand how babies come to feel known by their mothers through everyday interactions.
Ziyi (Fiona) Guo | Research Assistant – Statistics
Ziyi (Fiona) is a Master’s student in the Psychology in Education program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Previously, she received a Bachelor’s Degree in International Affairs and Psychology from George Washington University. She completed her senior project on the impact of psychological stress on affect and physical well-being. She’s interested in how familial dynamics shape the development of psychopathology with a multicultural emphasis. She joins Dr.Beebe’s lab as a member of the statistics team. She hopes to pursue a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology.
Gavkhar Abdurokhmonova, M.S. | Project Coordinator
Born and raised in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Gavkhar received her BA combined with MA in Psychology from Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia. As a primarily research oriented program, it laid the foundation for her interest in research in clinical psychology. Gavkhar's developing passion for psychology and her willingness to apply theory in practice motivated her to pursue a Masters in Mental Health Counseling from Long Island University, Brooklyn. As a part of Dr. Beebe's research team, Gavkhar learned about the immense capacities of microanalysis in clinical research, which inspired her to consider it for her own research and clinical practice in the future. Gavkhar is pursuing a PhD in Clinical or Developmental Psychology. Outside of academia, she loves to play piano and learn foreign languages in order to explore diverse cultures and ethnicities.
Vesna Bozic, M.A. | Research Assistant - Coder
Vesna grew up in New York, and received her BA in Psychology from Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts at The New School in 2017. After college she attended The New School for Social Research, graduating with an MA in Psychology in 2019. While pursuing her MA Vesna was a research assistant for Dr. Miriam Steele and Dr. Howard Steele’s lab, The Center for Attachment Research. In January of 2020, Vesna joined Dr. Beatrice Beebe’s Communication Sciences Lab at Columbia University Medical Center. Vesna is interested in attachment styles and child development and hopes to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Outside of academia she enjoys karaoke and Pilates.
Michaela De Filippis | Research Assistant – Coder
Born and raised in New York City, Michaela received her B.A. in Psychology from Vassar College in 2019. Prior to joining Dr. Beebe’s Lab, Michaela served as a research assistant to an Adjunct Professor of Economics at the Harvard Extension School, and recently presented the findings of her senior thesis at the Association for Psychological Sciences’ (APS) annual convention. Since her sophomore year, Michaela has been actively involved in developmental, clinical, and social psychology research. While at Vassar, she conducted developmental research at the College’s on-site laboratory school, Wimpfheimer Nursery; served as a research assistant to Dr. Abigail Baird in the Laboratory for Adolescent Science; and completed an optional, year-long senior empirical thesis exploring the potential of popular social media platforms (e.g. Instagram) for increasing young adults users’ mental health awareness and accessibility to mental health resources. Michaela has also completed diagnostic psychiatric evaluations of children and adolescents at NYU’s Child Study Center, and served as a paraprofessional behavioral specialist at Camp STAR, a summer treatment program for children with ADHD and Other Related Disorders. Michaela is interested in child and adolescent neurodevelopment and psychopathology, and hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.
Zachary Cagan | Research Assistant - Coder
Zachary is thrilled to be a part of Dr. Beebe's Communication Sciences Lab! Prior to joining the lab, Zack lived in Los Angeles working as an ensemble member of the 24th Street Theatre and as an educator, teaching enrichment courses in film at the primary level. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting from the Florida State University, studied physical comedy in London, and improvisation with Upright Citizens Brigade (LA). Areas of interest include non-verbal communication and how the caregiver-infant dyad informs development and treatment in children and adolescence. He is also interested in working with military veterans. Zack is currently pursuing a PsyD in Counseling. In his spare time, he enjoys travelling, breathing less-polluted air, and spending time with his family and friends.
Romola Hilerio, M.A. | Lab Coordinator - Media
Romola Hilerio received her MA in Clinical Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University and her BS from the College of Staten Island. During her time at TC, Romola completed the requirements to receive an advanced certificate for the Sexuality, Women, and Gender project with a special interest in maternal and reproductive well-being. Prior to joining Dr. Beebe’s lab, Romola interned at the Motherhood Center of New York where she acted as a co-facilitator in the PHP day program. Currently Romola is on the media team at Dr. Beebe’s lab and hopes that her lab experience with infant communication will supplement her growing knowledge of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders so she can work with mother/infant dyads in the future.
Delaney Simchuk | Lab Manager
Delaney received her BA in May 2021 from William & Mary in English Literature with a concentration in Biomedical Science. After graduating, Delaney worked as a Research Assistant for Howard University’s College of Medicine where she worked on a project that addressed health disparities and ways to improve intervention in Wards 7 & 8 of Washington, DC for individuals experiencing OUD. Delaney is currently getting her master’s at Teachers College, Columbia University in Psychology in Education. She is loving working for Dr. Beeb’s lab as a coder focusing on infant head orientation. She plans to pursue a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology and plans to use her experience in Dr. Beebe’s lab to work in prenatal care.
.
Ante Dany | Research Assistant - Coder
Ante received his BA in Psychology from Marist College and is earning his MA in Clinical Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. His prior research experience includes two independent research projects: “Pre-Homework Mindfulness Interventions at a Poughkeepsie Middle School” and “The Inner Voice in the Transgender Population”. Before joining the lab, Ante worked as a clinical Hypnotherapist and worked with various forms of psychopathology. He is interested in the impact of meditation on cognitive reserve, preventive psychology, and the role of legislation in mental health. In his free time, Ante enjoys swimming and studying mystical practices aimed at altering consciousness. Ante will pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and a JD with an emphasis on neuropsychology.
Aurora Parks | Research Assistant - Coder
Aurora received her B.S. in Psychological and Brain Sciences from UC Santa Barbara before moving to New York and joining Dr. Beebe's lab. In Santa Barbara, Aurora was a research assistant for the Social Cognitive Development Lab where she completed her undergraduate thesis on connections between language development and cultural group signifiers. She has worked in schools in both Santa Barbara and New York with kids of all ages. These experiences allowed her to realize that she wants to continue working with kids throughout her life. Aurora hopes to pursue a career that combines her interests in family systems, communication sciences, and child development. Outside of the lab, she does community habilitation work and spends time with her friends.
Jingqian Wei (Jade) | Research Assistant - Coder
Jade is presently enrolled at Columbia University's Teacher College to pursue an MA in clinical psychology. In 2022, she graduated from Rutgers University with a BA in psychology and a dual degree in human resources management. She supported Dr. Keiko Brynildson as a Teaching Assistant. In addition to her work on Dr. Beebe's coding team, Jade is a volunteer student evaluator at the CHIRA, where she works with asylum seekers. She also serves as a research assistant at Columbia University's Teacher College in the Muslim Perinatal lab. She intends to seek a Ph.D. in clinical psychology in the future, concentrating on the impact of infants' disordered attachments on postpartum depression.
Jessie Wang Ke-Xin| Research Assistant - Coder
Jessie is currently pursuing her M.A. in Clinical Psychology at Teacher College, Columbia University. She received her B.S. degree from the University of Toronto in 2022, double majoring in Psychology & Physiology, and minoring in Statistics. Jessie’s research interests are mainly in two directions: a) understanding psychopathology from a developmental perspective, focusing on mechanisms: how early life experiences impact individuals' development and how those impacts unfold in later life; and b) from there, finding the effective ingredients in psychotherapies and improving intervention effectiveness by suiting each individual’s differential needs. Through the research journey, interpersonal relationships became the variable she was most passionate about in understanding psychopathology and treatments. So, she joined Dr. Beebe’s lab in 2023 as an infant gaze coder to investigate the root of relationships: how do we communicate at the beginning of life? In the future, she plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, engaging in both research and clinical practice, focusing on the population of children, adolescents and young adults. Jessie was born in Jiangsu, China and had been living in Toronto, Canada since high school before moving to NYC. Outside of school and work, she enjoys cooking, planting and staying with her cats to slow down the spinning mind.
Xinyu (Lily) Wang | Research Assistant – Coder
Lily received her B.S. degree from Ohio State University, majored in Psychology, and minored in Global Public Health and Studio Art. During her undergraduate program, Lily worked for two years in the Childhood Mood Disorders Lab and the Attitude and Persuasion Lab at OSU as a research assistant. To have a better understanding of clinical psychology research and practice, Lily joined Dr. Beebe’s Lab and stared her study at Clinical Psychology Master’s Program at Teachers College, Columbia University simultaneously. She is interested in the social determinants of mental health outcomes and hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Outside of academia, Lily enjoys drawing, painting, and fitness.
Jane Lee | Research Assistant – Statistics and Coder
Jane received her Bachelor of Science in psychology and completed a minor in neuroscience at the University of Minnesota in Spring 2018. For the following two years, she worked as a full-time Research Assistant in research labs to learn more about severe psychopathology as well as child development. She assisted with the Human Connectome Project - Development study at the Institute of Child Development under the supervision of Dr. Kathleen Thomas. In the summer of 2020, she enrolled into the Master’s in Psychology in Education program at Teachers College, Columbia University. She also joined Dr. Beatrice Beebe’s Communication Sciences Lab as a Research Assistant to learn more about how mother-infant face-to-face communication, a significant part of early childhood experiences, plays a role in predicting future mother-infant attachment and psychopathology as late as young adulthood! Going forward, Jane wishes to pursue doctoral studies in clinical psychology to investigate how early life events and stressors predict or affect one’s developmental trajectory in adolescence and young adulthood.
Jacob Goldberg | Research Assistant – Coder
Jacob left New York in 2014 to study English Literature and philosophy at McGill University in Montreal. While there, he wrote stories and volunteered on the palliative care ward at the Jewish General Hospital, where he offered emotional support to the patients and their families. This work inspired him to come back to America to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology. As he was familiarizing himself with the academic landscape back home, he got a job as a bookseller, where one day, a customer came in, and, during their conversation, mentioned to him Dr. Beatrice Beebe's research. Jacob imagined working with her would be fascinating, and was pleasantly surprised to see that she had an opening in her lab. Since joining the team in August 2020, he has thoroughly enjoyed learning from Dr. Beebe about mother-infant nonverbal communication, and looks forward to continuing his work as a mother-gaze coder.
Zoe Leaf | Lab Coordinator - People & Projects
Zoe received her BA in Child Study and Human Development from Tufts University in May 2020, with a minor in Food Systems and Nutrition through the Environmental Studies department. At Tufts, she was involved in leadership with various child-centred community organizations and loved becoming acquainted with kids from all over Boston. Her prior research experience includes working at the Child Health Equity Research Lab and the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development, both located at Tufts. Zoe is a born and raised New Yorker, and loves the city more than any place in the world, though she loved going on adventures to new cities when she studied abroad in London for a year. When she’s not working, Zoe loves to read, write, make art, run, cook, and spend time in nature. In the future, she would like to obtain her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and focus on treating children, adolescents, and young adults.
Emily Hynson | Research Assistant – Coder
Emily is from Fort Myers, FL, and graduated from the University of Central Florida with a BS Honors in Psychology and a BS in Health Sciences. It was during her undergraduate career that she began to get involved with research and published her own undergraduate honors thesis. Emily joined the lab through Teachers College, Columbia University where she currently studies as a MA candidate. While at TC, she has focused her interest and population on the mother-infant dyad, antenatal, perinatal, and postpartum disorders, and global mental health. In addition, Emily is in the Pediatric Behavioral Health Integration Program at Montefiore working with parents and children in the primary care setting. She is also in the Global Mental Health Lab on a project working to implement IPT to mothers in Lebanon suffering from postpartum depression. Ultimately, Emily hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and focus her career on the mother-infant dyad.
Christina Markakis | Research Assistant – Media
Christina Markakis is a former Learning Experience Designer. She is a graduate of The King’s College, having received her Bachelor’s degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics. While working in the education system as a course and learning experience developer, Christina began to realize that her passion for understanding attachment theory, post traumatic stress disorder, and psychoanalytic practices could be better pursued within the field of psychology. She hopes to work as a clinical or developmental psychologist. Christina is a longtime resident of New York City, and currently calls Crown Heights, Brooklyn home. In her free time, she can be found walking Prospect Park and rearranging the art in her apartment with her roommates.
Emily Grella | Lab Manager - People & Projects
Emily is currently pursuing her MA in Clinical Psychology at Teacher College, Columbia University. She completed her BA with a dual degree in psychology and philosophy from the University of Rochester in 2019. During Emily’s time at U of R, she worked as a research assistant and lab coordinator for a social psychology research lab. She worked as a research assistant in a family psychology research lab. Apart from working on the People and Projects team in Dr. Beebe’s lab, Emily also volunteers at The Motherhood Center, working with infants as a nursery assistant for mother’s suffering from postpartum mood-related disorders. She also works as a research assistant in the Development, Environment, and Wellness (DEW) lab at Teacher College, Columbia University. In the future, she plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, focusing on how postpartum mood disorders in new mothers can affect the mother-child dyad and attachment in children.
Wenbo Zhang | Research Assistant - Media
Wenbo received his BA in Psychology and Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences from Northwestern University in June 2022. His prior research experience includes working at Life-Span Development Lab, Social Cognition and Intergroup Process Lab, and Youth Mindfulness Awareness Program, all located at Northwestern. He is interested in studying internalizing disorders and corresponding evidence-based treatments for the youth population. Wenbo was born in Taiyuan, Shanxi, China, and came to the States for high school in Atlanta, Georgia. He has been missing the sunshine ever since he went to Chicago for college. Since he's in New York, he is ready to explore various Broadway shows. In the future, he hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, studying the effectiveness of psychotherapies for the youth population.
Lindsay Goolsby | Lab Coordinator – Statistics
Lindsay joined Dr. Beebe’s lab in the summer of 2019, and is currently she is Head of the statistics team. She graduated NYU with a degree in East Asian Studies in 2015 and completed Columbia University’s post-baccalaureate in Psychology May 2020. She hopes to continue researching non-verbal communication alongside social bias in a PhD program. In her spare time, Lindsay loves to dance, draw, and bother her cat.
Tess Jacobson | Lab Coordinator – People & Projects
Born and raised in New York City, Tess received her BA in Child Study and Human Development from Tufts University in 2019. Upon graduation, Tess joined Dr. Beebe’s lab and became employed at The Neurological Institute of New York where she works on Dr. Marla Hamberger’s research team. On days when she is not working with Dr. Beebe, Tess assists in running language studies on children, adolescents, and adults with and without epilepsy. Tess is interested in psychopathology and child development, and would like to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.
Amruta Wagh, M.S. | Lab Coordinator - Media
Amruta has an M.S. in Clinical Psychology from Auburn University at Montgomery. Before that, she received her undergraduate degree from the University of S.Alabama in Mobile, AL. She moved to NYC in 2016 and joined Dr. Beebe's Communication Sciences Lab in 2018 and has enjoyed being a part of the filming and media team wherein she gets to watch mothers and babies dynamically interact with each other. Since then, she has also worked at Bellevue Hospital and NYU's FTRG Behavioral Science lab. Amruta plans on pursuing a Ph.D. in clinical psychology focusing on evidence-based youth intervention and its effects. She enjoys reading, watching sci-fi movies, and loves trying out various yoga poses.
Nurdan Emanet, M.A. | Research Assistant
Nur received her BA from Bogazici University, Istanbul. During her last year at Clinical Psychology Masters Program at Teachers College, Columbia University, she enrolled Dr. Beebe's Communication Sciences Lab as a research assistant to advance her knowledge in developmental psychology within the scope of mother-infant communication and infant social-emotional development. Currently, she manages Dr. Beebe and Dr. Herbstman's NIH funded project: "Prenatal endocrine-disrupting chemicals and social/cognitive risk in mothers and infants: Potential biologic pathways." At the same time, she works as a research assistant at Dr. Kimberly Noble's Neurocognition, Early Experience, and Development (NEED) Lab. Nur is interested in understanding the effects of early adverse environmental experiences on children's social, cognitive and neurological development. In the future, she hopes to develop better interventions to optimize child development especially in underprivileged communities.
Jiaqi Liu | Statistics, Research Assistant – Coder
After maintaining a BA at University of Toronto, Jiaqi moved to New York to broaden her knowledge in psychology by pursuing a Master's degree at New York University. With a great interest in the study of interpersonal relationships and attachment theory, she joined Dr.Beebe’s Communication Sciences Lab in 2019, working in the statistic team. She also codes mother-offspring vocal rhythm and wants to adopt the same procedure to analyze couples’ communication, which was her master research proposal. She hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology to study mood disorders (especially depression and bipolar) and treatments, potentially using microanalysis. Outside academia, she enjoys baking and wants to own her own little bakery after retirement.
Elliana Sherwin | Lab Coordinator - People & Projects
Ellie graduated from Wesleyan University in 2014. Though always interested in psychology and psychodynamic thinking, Ellie's love of writing and social advocacy motivated her to first study English and Anthropology. She pursued documentary filmmaking for three years before ultimately changing careers. Through visual storytelling and working with people, she found that clinical psychology was at the heart of her professional and intellectual pursuits. Dr. Beebe's lab provided the unique opportunity to make this transition into the field. The use of microanalysis in a deeply interpersonal setting has opened Ellie's eye to the possibilities of research and clinical intervention through interactive mediums, like film. She is now eager to build on these skill sets with a PhD in clinical psychology. Inspired by the work and community fostered in Dr. Beebe's Communication lab, Ellie hopes to conduct research that has direct, clinical application.
Natasha Yamane, M.A. | Research Assistant
Natasha received her MA in Clinical Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University and her BA in Psychology from Barnard College. She is interested in pursuing a PhD in the future and applying microanalysis to dyadic research in the context of developing social interventions for families of children with autism spectrum disorder. She is currently head of the vocal rhythm coding team and assists with everything from troubleshooting data issues to building computer programs for analysis. Natasha is also working in the Department of Neurology at the Columbia University Medical Center with Dr. Sylvie Goldman on her research in young children diagnosed with autism. In her free time, Natasha enjoys powerlifting and volunteers as a mentor in Apex for Youth, a nonprofit that provides educational, social, and recreational programming to underprivileged Asian and Asian American youth in NYC.
Alessandra García | Research Assistant – Coder
Alessandra has a bachelor degree from The City College of New York in Manhattan. Before that, she was working on Crisis Text Line as a online crisis counselor, providing free mental support and turning hot moments to a cool calm using techniques in empathetic listening. She joined Dr. Beebe's Communication Sciences Lab in 2019, where she takes part in consenting Spanish speaking mothers, as well as help film mother and babies interacting. Inside the lab, she also codes infant facial affect of four month babies. Alessandra plans on pursuing a Masters in school psychology focusing on mental health, learning, and behavior, to help children and youth succeed academically, socially, behaviorally, and emotionally. She loves spending time with family and friends, visiting new places, and listening to music in different languages.
Cassandra Malouta | Research Assistant
Cassie is from Marco Island, Florida. She attended Fordham University and majored in Psychology. Cassie is interested in pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology. She is particularly interested in multicultural issues and psychoanalysis. Cassie loves working on the Mother Facial affect code and would like to complete research in her graduate education involving mother-infant communication in regards to Mother Facial Affect.
Abigail Davis | Research Assistant
I graduated with a bachelor's in psychology from St. Olaf College in the spring of 2015. Since graduating I have worked on a mental health and substance use hotline and here at NYSPI as a lab assistant. I will be pursuing a degree in clinical social work starting in the fall of 2019 with the goal of being an child/adolescent therapist in an inpatient setting. Being a part of this lab has given me experience improving my research skills and the opportunity to work in a welcoming, warm environment with a fantastic group of peers.
Emily Hersch, B.A. | Lab Coordinator - Media Management
Emily was born in Sydney, Australia and grew up in New York City. She received her BA at Emory University with a double major in Psychology and Media Studies. Her previous research experience includes implementing and testing the efficacy of a remote psychoeducation program for caregivers at the Atlanta VA as well as recruiting and interviewing participants for a study investigating civilian trauma, PTSD, and clinical and physiological implications of trauma at the Grady Memorial Hospital. She currently volunteers with Mind Right, a tech nonprofit offering adolescents on-demand mental health coaching through a digital platform and is the practice manager for the Canarick Center, a psychotherapy practice located in Manhattan. She is enthusiastic about pursuing a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in the near future.