About Me

How do we know what we know? How do we change that knowledge when it is challenged by new information? For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in questions like these - questions about how the mind represents information. At Susquehanna, I am investigating these issues in a variety of ways. My current research interests include children’s development of number knowledge, belief revision, and mental representation. My work in these areas has been published in journals such as Cognition and Behavioral and Brain Sciences, and presented at conferences like Cognitive Science and Society for Research in Child Development.

I teach a variety of classes within the Psychology and Neuroscience majors, including Principles of Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Directed Research capstone, and Psycholinguistics, but one of my favorite courses (and most challenging to teach) is Research Methods. That’s the class where students see the machinery behind the behavioral sciences. They learn how we, as psychologists, can measure human behavior and cognitive processes and what evidence we need to draw conclusions about behavior. To go through that process in Methods and to work with these students later in their time at SU-watching them apply this knowledge as they pursue their own capstone research projects or work in my lab-is incredibly rewarding. The kind of analytical thinking and clear, thoughtful communication that students develop in the psychology major are invaluable skills for all students, regardless of the paths they choose after Susquehanna.

Courses Taught