Welcome

Supporting every great scientist is a team of individuals who keep things rolling. This is a website dedicated to the people who work behind the shadow of Dr. Donald Stuss.

General Inquiries

Phone: 416-785-2500 ext. 3078
Fax: (416) 785-2862
E-mail: sgillingham@rotman-baycrest.on.ca

Address

The Rotman Research Institute
3560 Bathurst Street, Room 936
Toronto, Ontario, M6A 2E1

Volunteering Opportunities

Phone: 416-785-2500 ext. 2080
E-mail: volunteers@rotman-baycrest.on.ca

Scientists:

Dr. Don Stuss

Post-doctoral Fellows:

Antonio Vallessi

Previous studies on patients with focal prefrontal lesions or on healthy volunteers undergoing temporary virtual lesions (transcranial magnetic stimulation) have shown neuropsychological dissociations between different attentional processes like, for example, temporal preparation, monitoring, energising, task-setting and inhibition. We are interested in extending these results from the level of single areas involved in specific attentional processes to the level of the networks involved by means of functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and new tools of analysis of imaging data, such as Partial Least Square regression analysis. The ultimate goal is to understand how these networks change and reorganise themselves as a consequence of disabling events, such as aging and stroke. In order to achieve a better cognitive description and temporal characterization of the processes involved in the tasks used with fMRI, Event-related Potentials (ERPs) are also recorded during the performance of some tasks.

Graduate Students:

Christina Gojmerac

I am working on my PhD in Psychology at the University of Toronto. The focus of my PhD thesis is on the neural basis of emotional control. I work with patients who have frontal lobe damage caused by stroke, tumor, or traumatic accident (e.g., motor vehicle accident). I use a combination of physiological methods, such as Electromyography (EMG) and Electrodermal Activity (EDA), and behavioural methods to measure emotional reactivity and emotional control towards aversive pictures and sounds. This research is important because of the potential it has towards understanding emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety.

My research also examines how emotional control changes with age. Some mental functions appear to decline with age (such as memory), but other mental functions appear to stay the same or even improve with age. My research compares groups of younger and older individuals on tests of emotion to determine whether emotional reactivity and emotional control, decline, improve, or stay the same over the life span, both of which are measured subjectively through self-report and objectively through physiological responses.

If you would like to learn more about my research, you may contact me by email (christig@psych.utoronto.ca) or telephone (416-785-2500 x2938).

 

Katherine M. Krpan

I am a PhD student in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto; but these days most of my time is at Baycrest!

Broadly, I'm interested in the real-world consequences of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). More specifically, my research is focused on how frontal lobe damage affects the ability to cope with stressful situations that people encounter on a daily basis. In order to conduct this type of research, I use a number of tools including neuropsychological, behavioural and physiological tests.

The clinical implications of this type of research are pretty exciting! Understanding the mechanisms of maladaptive coping could allow us to develop more sophisticated rehabilitative interventions that could be employed early in recovery. Ultimately, this may lead to more fulfilling and productive lives for people with TBI.

Throughout my graduate career, I have been supported by the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, the Max & Ruth Wiseman Graduate Student Scholarship (KLARU), and CIHR. For more information, you may contact me at katherine@psych.utoronto.ca or by telephone at 416 785 2500 ext. 2170.

 

Research Assistants:

Susan Gillingham

Katherine Lovell

Constance Nguyen

Lisa Strifler

In the realm of human frontal lobes, we have only uncovered the tip of the iceberg. We are constantly working on new studies, investigating various theories, and exploring new and exciting possibilites.