NeuroFog

Meet Our Team

Dr. Jonathan Fawcett

Jon is a Cognitive Psychologist by training who has studied a great deal of topics throughout his career. From early on his primary interests have been in understanding the neurocognitive mechanisms through which we control unwanted memories. He has approached this and related topics using tools borrowed from Cognitive Neuroscience, Psychophysiology, and Clinical Epidemiology. In addition to understanding the basic mechanisms through which memory control functions, he is also interested in understanding how these processes relate to mental disorders characterized by an inability to control unwanted thoughts (e.g., OCD, PTSD). In addition to being the principal investigator of the NeuroFog Laboratory, Jon is also an avid reader, musician, and gamer.

Lab Managers

Madi LaSaga

Madi is a lab manager and a fourth-year BSc (Hons.) student in Psychology (Co-op). Madi is currently completing her Honours under the co-supervision of Dr. Jonathan Fawcett and Dr. Chris Quinn-Nilas, investigating memory control of horror-relevant stimuli. She also collaborates with the Recreational Fear Lab, developing and validating the Severity of Horror Media-induced Intrusive Memories (SHMIM) scale. Her work is focused on bridging memory control research with the study of recreational fear to understand how individuals control unwanted thoughts and memories through the lens of horror.

Brooke Hiscock

(2022 – Present | Hon. Thesis | M.Sc. | Lab Manager)

Brooke has completed her B.Sc. (Hons.) Psychology degree (supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett) and is in her final year of an M.Sc. in Experimental Psychology (supervised by Dr. Emily Fawcett) at Memorial University of Newfoundland. While she has a background in both cognitive and clinical research, her primary focus is obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Specifically, her current thesis explores the potential transfer and spread of obsessions. She is also passionate about community outreach and stigma reduction work.

Grad Students

Nathaniel Wells

(2024 – Present)

Nathaniel is a Master of Science Student in Experimental Psychology at Memorial University of Newfoundland, supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett. His research explores the mechanisms of memory control—specifically investigating how individuals regulate unwanted thoughts or memories. Before this, he completed a Bachelor of Science (Hons.) in Psychology at Memorial University, where he studied the environmental factors influencing colony attendance in Atlantic Puffins. Outside of academia, Nathaniel enjoys hiking, reading, and convincing himself that buying “just one more book” is totally reasonable.

Jed Whitridge

(2021 – Present | Hon. Thesis | M.Sc. | Ph.D)

Jed is a PhD student in Experimental Psychology at Memorial University of Newfoundland, supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett. His research explores effective encoding strategies in human memory, using the production task. Jed’s secondary interest is in advanced methods, including expertise with Bayesian Statistics, Meta-analysis and Multinomial Processing Trees, to name a few. Outside academia, he enjoys hiking, baking and fine wines.

Kyla Malayang

(2021 – Present | Ph.D.)

Kyla is a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) student in Psychology. She has a diverse educational background, with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology and a Master of Science in Kinesiology. As an aspiring educator, her goal is to ultimately provide individuals with a learning disability with a cohesive voice at the provincial level, by advocating for the creation of accessible and research-informed programs to enhance their literacy skills. Her doctoral work broadly examines factors that contribute to academic success among post-secondary students. Beyond the lab, she enjoys volunteering with the Learning Disabilities Association of Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as spending time with family.

Chelsea Lahey

(2020 – Present | Hon. Thesis | Lab Manager | M.Sc. | Psy.D.)

Chelsea has completed her BA (Hons.) Psychology degree (supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett) and MSc in Experimental Psychology (co-supervised by Drs. Emily and Jonathan Fawcett) at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Her research has primarily focused on the identification of and stigmatization against lesser-known symptom presentations of OCD, specially Harm OCD. She is currently a PsyD student at MUN, completing her thesis research project under the co-supervision of Drs. Emily and Jonathan Fawcett. For this project, she intends to conduct a systematic review considering world-wide prevalence of illy-defined “miscellaneous” OCD symptoms in clinical samples. She has been a member of the Neurofog lab since Spring 2019, having proudly held the position of lab manager until Fall 2023.

Quinn Morrison

(2020 – Present | Psy.D.)

Quinn is completing her 1-year predoctoral residency at the Memorial University Student Wellness and Counselling Centre; the last step in becoming a Registered Psychologist. Quinn has completed clinical practicum placements in both public and private mental health settings; and has worked alongside individuals to address a range of concerns related to mood, anxiety, attention, sleep, identity, relationships, trauma, and substance use. Broadly, Quinn is interested in how individuals change and adapt to adversity. Under co-supervision of Drs. Emily and Jonathan Fawcett, her current research explores worldwide prevalence and predictors of aggressive obsessions in OCD populations.

Ashlee Coles

Ashlee completed her BA (Hons.) in Psychology under the supervision of Drs. Jonathan and Emily Fawcett. Her thesis examined the lay public’s ability to identify lesser-known subtypes of OCD and how stigma differs depending on OCD presentation. She completed her MSc under the co-supervision of Drs. Jonathan Fawcett and Nick Harris examining the prevalence of comorbid cannabis use disorder in individuals with anxiety or related disorders. Presently, Ashlee is a PsyD student (co-supervised by Drs. Jonathan and Emily Fawcett) researching family accommodation in lesser-known symptom presentations of OCD and ARFID.

Kait Miller

(2024 – Present | Ph.D)

Kaitlyn is a PhD student (supervised by Drs. Emily and Jonathan Fawcett), with nearly 15 years of experience working in Australia as a psychologist. She holds a Bachelor of Psychology and a Master of Clinical Psychology (with Distinction) from the University of Newcastle. In 2016, she was awarded the Australian Psychological Society [APS] College of Clinical Psychologists Student Prize for excellence in coursework, research, and practicum. Kaitlyn is passionate about women’s mental health, having practiced in child and family health clinics, sexual assault services and perinatal mental health. Kaitlyn’s PhD research will be focused on anxiety in the perimenopausal/menopausal period. She is deeply committed to developing research that will inform evidence-based practice and positively impact individuals, families and communities.

Gillian Foley

(2024 – Present | Ph. D)

Gillian is a PhD student in Health and Wellness Psychology under the supervision of Drs. Jonathan Fawcett and Rosemary Ricciardelli. She completed both her Bachelor of Science (Hons) and Master of Applied Psychological Science at Memorial University. Her research mainly focuses on the mental health of correctional officers and other public safety personnel.

Honours Students

Matt Wheeler

(2023 – Present | Hon. Thesis)

Matt started volunteering in 2023 with the Neurofog lab. He is in his final year of a BA (Hons) in Psychology being supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett and Dr. Ada Vaziri. His research is exploring the prevalence of anxiety disorders in children with ADHD.

Siyue Hu

(2023 – Present | MUCEP | Hon. Thesis)

Siyue is a fourth-year BSc (Hons.) student in Psychology. She is supervised by Dr. Jonathan Fawcett and is doing research about pupillary mechanisms in production effect. Her main field of research interest is in memory control and anxiety disorder.

Lauryn Eagles

(2024 – Present | MUCEP | Hon. Thesis)

Lauryn is a fourth-year BSc (Hon.) Student in Psychology. She joined the NeuroFog lab as a volunteer in 2024 and is now completing her Honours thesis on the production effect under the supervision of Dr. Jonathan Fawcett.

NeuroFog Alumni and Collaborators

Alumni

2022 – 2023: Brooke Hiscock (Hon. Thesis)
2022 – 2023: Kera McGrath (Hon. Thesis)
2021 – 2023: Ahida Shahrier (Hon. Thesis | SURA)
2021 – 2022: Chad Synyard (Hon. Thesis)
2021 – 2022: Anna Froude (Hon. Thesis)
2020 – 2022: Noah Pevie (SURA/Co-op | Directed Studies | Hon. Thesis)
2021: Harsha Ajith (Directed Studies)
2020 – 2021: Laura Pittman (Hon. Thesis)
2020 – 2021: Bethany Seim (Hon. Thesis)
2020 – 2021: Jennifer Bent (Hon. Thesis)
2020 – 2021: Aimee Hirwa (Hon. Thesis)
2019 – 2021: Chris Clark (M.Sc.)
2019 – 2021: Delainey Drakes (M.Sc.)
2019 – 2021: Ryan Lee (Hon. Thesis)
2020: Suhail Hassan (SURA | Summer Co-op)
2019 – 2020: Alicia Stewart (Hon. Thesis)
2018 – 2020: Hannah Willoughby (M.Sc.)
2017 – 2020: Kelsi Hall (Hon. Thesis | M.Sc.)
2019 – 2020: Janaya Toope (Hon. Thesis | Directed Studies)
2019: Zahin Prangon (MUCEP)
2017 – 2019: Vanessa Strong (Psy.D.)
2018 – 2019: Rachelle Wakeham-Lewis (Hon. Thesis | MUCEP | NSERC Summer | Lab Manager)
2018 – 2019: Iain Gamba (Hon. Thesis | MUCEP | NSERC Summer)
2018 – 2019: Liam Foley (Hon. Thesis)
2017 – 2019: Julia Rose (Hon. Thesis | SURA | NSERC Summer)
2017 – 2018: Landon Churchill (Ph.D. Student)
2017 – 2018: Jillian Penney (Hon. Thesis)
2017 – 2018: Rabia Farmahan (Hon. Thesis | Directed Studies)
2017 – 2018: Brittany Flood (Hon. Thesis)
2017 – 2018: Jenny Tiller (x2 Directed Studies)
2017 – 2018: Marcus Alves (FAPESP Visiting Doctoral Scholar (Brazil)
2017 – 2018: Julia Greenham (NSERC Summer Student | MUCEP Student | Lab Manager)
2017: Rachel Hewitt (Directed Studies)

Collaborators

Dr. Ada Vaziri
Dr. Nicholas Harris
Dr. Emily Fawcett
Dr. Josh Rash
Dr. Chris Quinn-Nilas
Dr. Brent Snook
Dr. Chris Lively
Dr. Jason Ozubko
Dr. Mark Huff
Dr. Kathleen Hourihan
Dr. Oscar Meuriva-Pastor

Volunteers

2023 – Present: Robyn Cumben
2024 – Present: Campbell Trask
2021 – Present: Justine Yick (Hon. Thesis)
2022 – Present: Brooke Hiscock (Honours Student)
2023 – Present: Matt Wheeler
2024 – Present: Claudia Walsh
2024 – Present: Kaden Nivens
2024 – Present: Kyra Williams
2024 – Present: Lauryn Eagles
2024 – Present: Nathaniel Wells
2024 – Present: Sydney Knapman