Who We Are
Dr. Erik Cheries
Lab Director
I am an Assistant Professor in Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences at UMass Amherst. Before coming to UMass, I obtained my Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at Yale University and completed my postdoctoral work in the Laboratory for Developmental Studies at Harvard University. I am also a proud alumnus of UMass Amherst and am excited to be conducting research in the Pioneer Valley!
Graduate Student Researchers
Charisse Pickron
Charisse received her B.A. in 2008 from Mount Holyoke College. Her research in the lab is focused on how infants perceive and think about the different people they may see in their environment. A current question she is examining is, when do infants think about different looking faces belonging to different types of social groups? Outside of lab, she practices Argentine Tango and enjoys playing sports.
Lauren Hartstein
Lauren received her B.A. in 2010 from Vassar College and is currently in her fifth (and hopefully final!) year as a graduate student. Her research in the lab is focused on the question of how infants determine traits about another person, specifically how socially dominant they are over another person. For example, can infants predict who will win in a competitive scenario based on the characters’ facial features?
Seyyed Bahram Borgheai
Seyyed is a research scholar at UMass Amherst who helps in this lab with two projects: Sound-Size studies and Dominance. He is interested in the development of social concepts, and how infants judge about dominance of a character based on facial and vocal cues. He is also engaged in producing animations and video stimuli for two of hisstudies.
Doctoral Program Graduates
Dr. Ashley Lyons
Ashley received her B.S. in 2011 from the University of Illinois, and is currently a third year graduate student in the Infant Cognition Lab. Her research in the lab is mostly focused on infants social & moral development. For instance, are infants able to predict how a character will behave based upon cues such as its appearance or the noise they make?
Dr. Hernando Osorio
Hernando is interested in the development of object representation, and how infants reason about physical properties of their environment, like space, time, and causality. His current research deals with object individuation, origins of essentialism, and its relationship with conceptual development.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Ellen Marshall
Ellen is a senior psychology major, minoring in Spanish. This is her 3rd semester working as a research assistant. Ellen is looking forward to graduating in the Spring with hopes of attending graduate school in the near future. After spending a semester studying in Spain, Ellen is also looking forward to continuing her travels and studies around the world.
Lynnie Fein-Schaffer
Lynnie Fein-Schaffer is a senior psychology and economics double major at Smith College. She began working in the Infant Cognition Lab during Summer 2016 after her semester abroad in Geneva. Outside of the lab, she enjoys running, socializing with friends, and taking care of many children in the community.
Hi! My name is Phung Vuong. I am currently a senior at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a Psychology minor. My aspiration is to become a neonatologist, which is one of the reasons why I decided to be part of the ICL! I have been in the ICL since Fall of 2015. Outside of lab, I am usually in Southwest working as RA or at the library working as a peer mentor. I also really enjoy going on spontaneous adventures and hiking!
Abigail Aveni
Yikfung Sean Tang
I am a senior studying Psychology and Communication Disorders at Umass. I volunteered for the Infant Cognition Lab this summer, and this Fall will be my first semester. I am also a member of the Developmental and Disabilities Humanities Society. I enjoy hanging out with friends and being outside. I hope to travel after graduating. I want to find an internship that will allow me to travel as well as working with children. After, I plan on going to graduate school to pursue my studies in Psychology.
Sean is a senior psychology major and education minor at UMass Amherst. He has studied in China for half of his life and has come to the United States for his college experience. He is excited to work for the Infant cognition lab and hopes to further strengthen his knowledge of developmental psychology and education. He hopes to pursue a career in education, teaching younger children and highschoolers.
Phung Vuong
Erika DeAngelis
Erika is a sophomore at Amherst College and plans on pursuing a major in Psychology and Statistics. She has been working in the field of developmental psychology at the Rochester Baby Lab since 2012, began working in the Infant Cognition Lab in Fall 2015, and has been working at the Child Learning and Development Lab at Amherst College since Spring 2016. Outside of the lab, she is very invested in playing the clarinet and yoga.
Ally Epstein
Ally Epstein is a senior in the Commonwealth Honors Program studying psychology at UMass. She began working in the Infant Cognition Lab in her sophomore year. She is interested in many branches of psychology and plans to attend graduate school for forensic psychology after graduating from UMass. Outside of the lab she enjoys reading, singing, and being a member of the executive board of Sigma Delta Tau sorority.
Ally Epstein
Sarah Danforth
Sarah is a sophomore biology major at UMass, with a minor in Spanish. This is her first semester in the lab, and she is eager to learn about infant cognition. Outside of the lab, Sarah's interests include fitness, music, and food.
Shannon Slater is a senior thesis student that is working towards her degree in psychology with a minor in education. She has been working in the ICL since Fall of 2014. Outside of the lab, Shannon is the marketing director of Sisters on the Runway, working in a clinical research lab, and acting as a mentor in our new psychology mentoring program. She hopes to take some time off to travel after graduation and see the world before she starts her new chapter in graduate school.
Shannon Slater
William Thornton is currently a senior psychology major at Umass Amherst with a minor in IT as well as education. He started working in the infant cognition lab in the summer of 2016. In the future he hopes to attend graduate school for school psychology. Outside of the lab he spends his time captaining the Ultimate Frisbee team at UMASS, hiking, and working at the UMASS Fine Arts Center as a stagehand.
William Thornton
Caroline is a junior at UMass studying public health with a minor in education. She is interested in pursuing a career in maternal and child health, and hopes to work closely with children in their early stages of development. Carolinebegan working in the lab in the fall of 2016 and is excited to begin studying infant cognition. Outside of the lab you can find her working in the UMass undergraduate admissions office, listening to music, or attending Zumba class.
Caroline O'Rourke
Sofia Rodriguez
Sofia is a senior completing a double major in Biology and Psychology with a minor in French and Francophone Studies. This is her first semester assisting in the Infant Cognition Lab. Outside of the lab, she’s working at UHS, completing TA work, or she’ll be at the library or at the Morill Science Center. She enjoys cooking for her friends, reading a good Spanish novel at the beach, and going to the movies and on hikes while learning about new plant species. She’s optimistic about going to Medical School back in Puerto Rico to pursue a career in pediatrics or obstetrics and gynecology.
Past Lab Members
2014-2015: Isabel Tweedie, Sam Mchugh, Sophia Muschell, Cleo Bergman, Ashley Lyons, Hernando Osorio
2013-2014: Rachel Rosen, Hayley Rivlin, Kristin Veale, Julia Broding, Lani Riley, Abigail Asselin, Sara Klum, Elizabeth Kim, Haley Medeiros
2012-2013: Holly Dixon, Rachel Rosen, Hayley Rivlin, Kelly McGuire, Brigid O’Rourke, Robert Daly, Jennifer Lanza, Amanda Zelen, Kristin Veale, Julia Broding, Lani Riley, Abigail Asselin
2011-2012: Jeremy Simon (Amherst College), Katherine Law, Kelly Belniak, Michelle Hone, Tyler Chapman, Neha Ahmad, Mariel Adams, Haley Guhn-Knight (Mt. Holyoke College), Jolie Anderson (Hampshire College)
2010-2011: Dominique Simmons
2009-2010: Brittany Cohen, Jordan Cote
