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Dr. Alan M. Leslie

Director, Board of Governors Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science

Dr. Leslie’s Psychology Faculty Page

Elif Poyraz, M.S.

Psychology & Cognitive Science

Elif is a Ph.D candidate interested in cognitive processes involved in children’s theory of mind reasoning. She studies how executive control skills (e.g., inhibition, working memory) contribute to performance in standard False Belief Tasks by utilizing computational modeling methods. She is looking to understand how certain performance factors could help better investigate the nature of Theory of Mind development and mechanisms underlying it by bringing together the different paradigms under a single modeling framework. In her free time, Elif enjoys watercolor painting, reading, FaceTiming with her family and friends in Turkey, and binge-watching cooking and baking shows. (email)

Deniz Gülkan

Psychology & Cognitive Science

Deniz is a third year student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Cognitive Science. Outside of her major she is interested in clinical psychology specifically with children. After finishing her undergraduate degree, she plans on attending Graduate school to pursue her passion in helping children. In her free time she loves to scuba dive, snorkel and learn new languages!

Caroline Sullivan

Psychology & Cognitive Science

Caroline is a third year student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Cognitive Science. She is interested in the cognitive development in children and its relation to different disorders. After finishing her undergraduate degree, she plans on going to graduate school. In her free time, she likes to play video games, powerlift, and travel.

Khushi Shah

Psychology & Cognitive Science

Khushi is a junior double majoring in psychology and cognitive science and minoring in linguistics here at Rutgers University. She’s mainly interested in the cognitive development of children and plans to immerse herself in academia in the future by pursing a PhD in the area. Outside of classes, Khushi is on the executive board for the Cognitive Science club and enjoys singing, writing, and reading.

Shriya Joshi

Psychology & Health Administration

Shriya is a sophomore majoring in Psychology and minoring in health administration. She hopes to one day receive her PsyD and become a pediatric neuropsychologist . In her free time she loves to read books, go on runs and hang out with her friends.

Antonino Scandaglia

Psychology & Cell Biology-Neuroscience

Antonino, currently in his third year at Rutgers, is pursuing a dual major in Psychology and CBN. Upon completing his undergraduate studies, he plans to attend medical school and pursue a career in psychiatry. In his free time, he enjoys reading, playing basketball, and going out with friends.

Sahana Iyer

Cognitive Science & Economics

Sahana is a rising senior double majoring in Cognitive Science and Economics. She is interested in strategic interactions, social cognition, and the underlying mental processes that sustain (and sometimes threaten) cooperation in human society. She hopes to pursue a PhD in social and behavioral sciences after her time at Rutgers. In her free time, she loves to read fantasy novels, go on long runs and adventures, and play the piano. 

Jai Yadav

Psychology & Communication

Jai is a fourth year student double majoring in Psychology and Communication. He is interested in understanding and learning about child development and plans on attaining a PsyD in order to work with children in the future. In his free time, he enjoys reading, listening to music, playing video games, and watching new shows.

Zainab Farooq

Psychology & Cognitive Science

I am a senior majoring in psychology with a minor in cognitive science. I am most interested in the cognitive development of children and hope to one day work with children with cognitive disabilities. Upon completion of my undergraduate studies, I wish to attend graduate school and further educate myself in the field of child psychology. On my free time, I love traveling, drawing and spending time with my family.

Simar Arora

Cell Biology-Neuroscience & Linguistics

Simar is a senior double majoring in Cell Biology and Neuroscience and Linguistics. She is interested in the cognitive development of children especially in regards to language and behavior. In the future, she plans to attend medical school. In her free time, she enjoys reading, hiking, visiting cafes, and going out with her friends

Karolina Matracz

Psychology & Education & Cognitive Science

Karolina is a fourth year student majoring in psychology and minoring in education and cognitive science. She is interested in child psychology and cognitive development. She plans on going to an Ed. M program to become a school counselor. In her free time, she loves running and cooking with family.

Renee Baillargeon, Alumni Professor, Psychology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaigne, IL
Sara T. Baker, University Lecturer, Psychology and Education, Cambridge University, England
Simon Baron-Cohen, Professor, Experimental Psychology, Cambridge University, England
Szilvia Biro, Assistant Professor, Psychology, Leiden University, Holland
Ori Friedman, Associate Professor, University of Waterloo, Canada
Uta Frith FRS, Professor, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Univ. London, UK
Tamsin C.German, Associate Professor, Psychology, UC Santa Barbara
D. Geoff Hall, Professor, Psychology, University of British Columbia
Bruce Hood, Professor, Experimental Psychology, Bristol University, UK
Zsuzsa Káldy, Associate Professor, Psychology, UMass, Boston
Melissa Kibbe, Post-doctoral Research Associate, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
Josh Knobe, Assistant Professor, Philosophy, University of Maryland
Kris Onishi, Assistant Professor, Psychology, McGill University, Canada
Katya Saunders
, Post-doctoral Associate, New York University
Brian Scholl, Associate Professor, Psychology, Yale University
Luca Surian, Professor, Center for Mind/Brain Studies, University of Trento, Italy
Claudia Uller, Lecturer, Psychology, University of Essex, England
Deena Weisberg, Post-doctoral Research Associate, UPenn, Philadelphia
Fei Xu, Professor, Psychology, University of California, Berkeley

Past Graduate Students

Lu Wang,

Sydney Levine,

Michelle Cheng

Gala Stojnic

Past Undergraduate Research Assistants

Dean Schansinger, Honors Thesis Student

Ashley Han

Jane Lillard

Doriana Lacitignola, Honors Thesis Student

Swathi Jayakumar

Riddhi Jadhav

Aparnaa Muthaiah

Tiffany Fan

Gianna Mignano

Jade Zack

Daniella Mancebo

Yanyi Chen

Emery Clomax