Former Honors Students
Hailey Wooten
Hailey Wooten graduated from UCD in spring 2023 majoring in psychology with a minor in education and gender, sexuality, and women’s studies. She was an Undergraduate Research Ambassador for the University Honors Program, part of the Regent Scholar Society, and has been a Research Assistant and Project Coordinator for the Polyamorous Networks Project for the past two years in the Attraction and Close Relationships Lab at UC Davis. She was awarded highest honors for her Undergraduate Honors Thesis, which explores how polyamorous relationship structures (i.e, hierarchical versus non-hierarchical) may influence compersion (i.e., positive emotions like joy that an individual may experience from their partner being intimately involved with another partner). She aims to apply to PhD programs in social psychology and in her spare time, Hailey enjoys crocheting and reading anything non-fiction.
Irene Qin
Irene Qin graduated from UCD in 2022, majoring in Biological Sciences and minoring in Psychology. She is primarily interested in the validity and mechanism behind Chapman’s Love Languages, and is currently investigating if matching effects exist for love languages and other relationship constructs. She plans to pursue a career in the medical field, and is passionate about the intersection between close relationships, health, and well-being. Irene is currently an Airbnb co-host and enjoys skincare and baking.
Sarah Carpenter
Sarah Wei Carpenter graduated from UCD in 2022, double majoring in Psychology and Chinese Language. Her research interests include consensual non-monogamy, and more specifically, how the inner-workings of a polyamorous relationship can determine relationship satisfaction and levels of jealousy. She plans to continue with relationship research after undergrad, and eventually work with couples in a therapeutic setting. Through her research, she wants everyone to understand that they are deserving and capable of having great relationships. In her free time, Sarah enjoys rock climbing and shopping for fun clothing!
Independent Projects
Beyza Arican Dinc
Beyzanur graduated in 2020 from Bogazici University with a BA in Psychology. After competed her MA in Psychology at San Francisco State University in 2022, she joined Dr. Shelly Gable’s lab at UC Santa Barbara in fall 2022 as a PhD student. She has been actively engaged in social psychology research since 2016 and her interests lie at the intersection of emotion regulation and romantic relationships. She has been training as a data scientist and is open to exploring questions in psychology that can be better answered with the applications of modern machine learning approaches. In her free time, she likes gardening and knitting.
Former Lab Managers
Tessa Hansen-Smith
Tessa is a 4th year student at UCD studying Psychology on the pre-Health track. She is especially interesteTessa Hansen-Smithd in the overlap between psychological and biological processes, and is interested in how the relationship quality between medical professionals and patients promotes effective communication, recovery and care. She plans to pursue a career in Nursing, but is also interested in doctoral programs focusing on health, relationships, and well-being. Tessa is also currently a supervisor for the UCD Coffee House in the Memorial Student Union.
Lab Alumni
Shreya Atitkar
Shreya Atitkar is a 4th year student at UCD majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior. She is primarily interested in exploring the ways in which socioeconomic status impacts the type of treatment patients receive in the Emergency Department, as well as how it impacts the dynamic of patient-physician interactions and relationships. She plans to pursue a career as an emergency physician with a focus on clinical research. Shreya has worked with the Emergency Medicine Research Associate Program (EMRAP) and is currently the captain and choreographer of UCD Raasleela, a professional Indian dance team.
Hassan Barnett
Hassan graduated from UCD in Spring 2019, and majored in Psychology and Communications. His research interests and professional goals sit at the intersection of family law, counseling, and public relations. For example, he is interested in how the coping mechanisms children use in response to trauma shape their subsequent relationships, especially with non-nuclear family members. Hassan has also worked with the Dynamic Interactions in Cognition and Emotion Laboratory, was a Marketing Assistant for Marble Mosaic, and served as the Recruitment & Retention Coordinator of the Cleftomaniacs A Cappella group. He enjoys writing screenplays and performing poetry.
Kealani Beltran
Kealani graduated from UCD in Spring 2018 with a BA in Psychology, and a minor in Sociology. She is passionate about mental health advocacy, and plans to pursue an MSW or MFT post-graduation. Kealani is specifically interested in how relationship dynamics influence our well-being and sense of self -- especially for marginalized or minority groups. She is currently the Holistic Retention Coordinator for American Indian Recruitment and Retention, and is directing an Indigenous day for Mental Health Awareness Month. She also works with the Students Against Suicide organization, and is a board member for the Davis Aggie Lions Club.
Nikita Devdhar
Nikita is a 4th year student at UC Davis studying Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior. She is interested in research that intersects biological and psychological studies, with a special focus on improving the relationships between professionals in healthcare and their patients. She plans to apply to Physician’s Assistant programs post-graduation, but is also interested in public health programs focused on bridging the gap within the healthcare industry. Nikita also plays on the UC Davis Women's Club Basketball team, and is currently the Vice President of Social Affairs for the pre-health society Kappa Gamma Delta.
Veronica Herrera
Veronica graduated from UCD in Spring 2018 with a BA in Psychology, and a minor in Chicana/o Studies. She is currently at Fresno State pursuing an MFT and plans to specialize in working with marginalized communities. She is interested in using principles of social psychology to better understand the relationship between clinicians and clients. For example, she is interested in exploring what factors shape the healthy formation and maintenance of clinical relationships, and what types of variables lead to their eventual dissolution. Veronica has also worked as a research assistant in the Personality and Self Knowledge Laboratory, has worked with the Davis Bridge Program, and contributed to the UC Davis Mental Health Initiative.
Aastha Mittal
Aastha is a 4th year student at UCD double majoring in Cognitive Science and Quantitative Psychology. She is currently interested in how attachment style and other individual differences (e.g., self esteem) affect the duration and success of romantic relationships. She is also interested in clinically related individual differences and their relationship to socially condemned behavior. She plans to pursue a PhD in Clinical or Counseling Psychology, with an emphasis on de-stigmatizing mental health diagnoses -- especially for younger populations in the system. Aastha is a member and choreographer for MOBility Dance Crew, as well as of the UC Davis Cognitive Psychology Club and the Undergraduate Psychology Association. She also works as a Resident Advisor in the freshmen residence halls with UC Davis Student Housing.
Brandi Mouton
Brandi graduated with a BS in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin, and currently works remotely as a research consultant and data manager for our laboratory. She has extensive training in human subjects protocols and managed a mixed-methods, longitudinal study at UT Austin examining the ways that major relationship transitions influenced physiological stress and psychological well-being. Brandi has also worked as a clinical observer at the Shannon Medical Center and as a Medical Laboratory Technician at the KIRK US Army Health Clinic. Moving forward, she plans to attend medical school and hopes to eventually train as a neurologist or psychiatrist. She is deeply motivated to address people’s critical medical needs by conducting research specifically designed to improve health outcomes.
Emily Rabbitt
Emily graduated from UCD in Spring 2019 and majored in Psychology with a pre-Health track. She is interested in research that integrates neurological and psychological processes to better understand patient health, especially after traumatic injury. She plans to apply to Physician Assistant programs post-graduation. Currently she is completing a Phlebotomy Certification program. Additionally she worked as the New Member Education Coordinator for Alpha Chi Omega, and is currently the Facility Operator.
Roan Raymundo
Roan graduated from UCD with a BS in Human Development. She is currently a Clinical Research Coordinator at Stanford University in the School of Medicine. After becoming an avid reader of the Modern Love column in the New York Times, Roan developed an interest in the science behind romance and attraction. More specifically, she is interested in the conditions that foster attraction and the physiological and psychological consequences of heart break. She hopes to enter an Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, where she will specialize in pediatrics or psychiatry. Roan also worked as a research assistant for the Peer Relations Lab in the Department of Human Ecology, was a member of the pre-health society Kappa Gamma Delta, a volunteer for the student-run Willow Clinic and the UCD Mental Health Initiative, and a student barista for Peet's Coffee on campus.
Skye Nadel
Skye graduated from UCD in Spring 2018 with a BA in Economics and a BA in Applied Statistics. His research interests fall within applied microeconomics, including behavioral economics, decision theory, information economics, health economics, and their intersections with psychology. He is particularly interested in the psychology of decision making and its implications for interpersonal interaction. He plans to pursue a graduate degree in data science or health economics, and hopes to work in the health industry. Skye is currently a data analyst intern for the Center for Student Affairs Assessment, and is a tutor in economics, statistics, and calculus for the Student Academic Success Center.