Interested in being a KIND LAB RA?
Interested applicants should complete our application HERE for consideration for RA positions. Eligible applicants will then be invited to attend a brief interview. Please read our eligibility criteria and information to learn more about the application process.
Interested in being a KIND LAB Graduate Student?
We will be accepting doctoral students for Fall 2024 through the Developmental Psychology track. If you’re interested in submitting a Ph.D. application and have any questions, please email Dr. Kalina Michalska at kalina.michalska@ucr.edu.
Lab Director
Kalina Michalska
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside. I am also a member of the Program in Neuroscience, the Department of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine, and the Presley Center for Crime and Justice Studies. Prior to joining UCR, I received my Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of Chicago and spent 4 years as a fellow at the NIMH Intramural Research Program, under the mentorship of Dr. Daniel Pine. I combine neuroimaging (fMRI), autonomic measures, and behavior observations to understand the neural systems underlying emotional processes engaged by the distress of others. I am interested in how those processes mature across development, how individual differences are expressed, and how these emotional processes relate to disruptive behavior problems and anxiety in childhood and beyond.
LAB MANAGER
Pearl Perez
I graduated from the University of California, Riverside in 2024 with a B.S. in Psychology. While at UCR, I worked as a Behavior Therapist for children with Autism, anxiety, and other behavioral challenges, and served as a peer mentor for PSI CHI Honor Society’s First-Year Lay Member Program. My research interests center on mother-child dyads, stress biology, and the intergenerational impact of early environments. As a summer intern through MSRIP’s Mind the Gap, I explored how maternal support and early adversity shape biomarkers of stress across development. I am thrilled to be part of the KIND Lab, working with our wonderful team and community.
Graduate Students
jordan mullins
I am a doctoral student in the Developmental Psychology program at the University of California, Riverside. I graduated from the University of California, Davis in 2017 with a B.A. in Psychology and a double minor in Spanish and Human Development. Following my undergraduate career, I worked as a research associate at the University of California, Los Angeles, where I examined the neural and emotional correlates of adolescent risk-taking and decision-making. My current research interests center on the relation between family functioning and children's behavioral, emotional, and neural development, particularly in children with conduct disorder and anxiety.
Matthew Kersting
I am a Ph.D. candidate in Developmental Psychology at the University of California, Riverside. I earned my B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Human Development from the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay in 2020. Before beginning my academic studies, I worked in the aerospace industry, where I developed an interest in moral, socioemotional, and cognitive development. My current research focuses on distributive justice, specifically, how social status shapes perceptions of fairness in resource allocation during childhood and adolescence, and the role that empathy and perspective-taking play in these judgments.
Hana qureshi
I am a doctoral student in the Developmental Psychology program at the University of California, Riverside. I graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a B.S. in Psychobiology. Following my undergraduate career, I worked alongside the Orange County Department of Public Health investigating COVID-19 cases, which sparked my interest in social interaction. I also worked as a study coordinator in psychology research labs at the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, Irvine, where I examined the physiological and neural bases of social connection and loneliness. My current research interests involve understanding social and emotional development through childhood and parent-child interactions, specifically dyadic physiological synchrony and emotion socialization.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Nicole Rodriguez
Maisha Ahmed
Christopher Chicas
Heidi Monrroy
Adam Miller
Johnathan Sia
Jeanette Carrillo
Camille Cruz
Nayeli Olmos
Siya Bhakta
Vanessa Alvarez
Rabyana Iqbal
Leilani Mendoza
Savana Marroquin
Joselyn Sandoval
Verenize Yepez
Amanda Tafoya
Hillary Chau
Carissa Dinh
Not Pictured
Karena Wong
Ava Lewis
Lab Managers
ELAYNE ZHOU, M.S.
Sandra Rosales
Nikki Adhami, M.S.W.
JOHANNAH MOYNIHAN, B.S., B.A.
DORA NGUYEN, B.S.
RESEARCH ASSISTANTS