Biography

Mandy is a postdoctoral research fellow working under the mentorship of Dr. Ronald Barr. She received her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of British Columbia in 2009 after completing her bachelor's degree at the University of Toronto in 2003. In graduate school, her program of research focused on understanding the parental characteristics that are associated with non-optimal parenting practices and with behavioral problems in children. After many years of working clinically with both adults and children who have been exposed to trauma, she decided to pursue a career in the prevention of child maltreatment.

As a CCHCSP-funded postdoctoral trainee, Mandy works on the team that is evaluating the Period of PURPLE Crying program – a Shaken Baby Syndrome prevention program that has been implemented province-wide since 2008 in British Columbia. In addition, Mandy is undertaking several research projects with Dr. Barr to further understand how infant crying may be a risk factor for infant abuse, and the moderating effect of both caregiver and infant gender.