Denisse Lopez (she/her/ella)
Lab Manager
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Denisse received her B.S. in Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience from UC San Diego as a first-generation college student. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Psychology to explore intergroup cognition and prejudice. Denisse is particularly interested in how children use race, accent, and status to explain social groups, relationships, identities, and inequality. In her free time, Denisse enjoys shooting film photography.

Emma Yu (she/her)
Lab Manager
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Emma graduated from Boston University in 2023 with a B.A. in Psychology and is planning to pursue a PhD in the future in social cognitive development. Emma is particularly interested in how babies and young children think about emotions and mental states in close social relationships, as well as how they reason about expectations of fairness. Outside of the lab, Emma enjoys bullet journaling, crocheting, and tap dancing!

Ashley Leung
Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ashley is a College Fellow in the lab, conducting research on the role of communication in infants’ early social cognition. She received her PhD from the University of Chicago, where she studied children’s communicative development, and the role that parents play in supporting children’s language learning.

Herrissa Lamothe
Associate Postdoctoral Fellow
[email protected]

I am a postdoctoral researcher at MIT working with Josh Tenenbaum and Laura Schulz. I previously completed my Ph.D. at Princeton University in Sociology. I am interested in social kinds, which include social categories (e.g. race, class, gender); and in social meanings which capture our symbolic hypotheses about the ways in which we are socially connected. I am also interested in developing a theory of central cognitionthat imports insights from the structure of our social concepts; and posits a computational model architecture for how the mind acquires its concepts and categories – including its social ones.

Hannah Hok Kim (she/her)
Associate Postdoctoral Fellow
[email protected]

Hannah is interested in how children think and reason about the social world. In particular, she likes to think about groups and how groups coordinate decision-making using procedures and rules. She previously received her PhD from the University of Chicago in Developmental Psychology and currently also works with Rebecca Saxe and The Center for Research on Equitable and Open Scholarship at MIT. In her free time, Hannah likes to make music, watch horror movies, and draw.

Mack Briscoe (they/them)
Graduate Student
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Mack is interested in how children and infants identify, navigate and seek to change different kinds of groups and group structures. They are especially interested in how these abilities develop over time as the foundations of later political thought. Outside of the lab, they enjoy making music, painting and reading sci fi novels.

Christina Steele (she/her)
Graduate Student
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Christina is a PhD student in the lab, conducting research on how children and infants’ perceptions of social groups influence their expectations about close social relationships. Christina graduated from the University of Oxford and University of Edinburgh as a Marshall Scholar with M.S. degrees in psychological research and social intervention. She received her B.A. in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania as a first-generation college student where she studied the intersection between intergroup and interpersonal relationships. She aims to understand how the human mind navigates the social world to fulfill our need for connection.

Melanie Luximon (she/her)
University of Bath ’26

I’m interested in how young children make moral judgements and reason about social interactions, and how this changes as they develop. I love reading, making jewellery, and recently I’ve started scrapbooking!

Dhanishtha Upadhyay (she/her)
University of Bath ’26

Dhanishtha is interested in how discrimination and discriminatory behaviours, empathy, and closeness are differently affected by group-based factors across ages. She is especially keen to work in applied research; to inform interventions that help alleviate individual struggles, improve interpersonal interactions, or encourage environmentally-friendly practices. Outside of the lab, she enjoys dabbling in various hobbies, including photography, dance, and theatre!

Tiffany Agkpo (she/her)
Harvard College ’25

I’m a rising senior concentrating in Psychology with a secondary in Theater, Dance & Media. I’m interested in the various ways caregiving relationships influence children and adolescents. I’m also fascinated in the ways cultural context can impact children’s understanding of intimacy. Outside of research, I plan concerts at Harvard and sound engineer for live productions! For fun, I love to write, read, and visit botanical gardens.

Juliet Leyva (she/her)
California State University, Fullerton ’24

Juliet is a recent graduate from her home institution where she majored in Kinesiology with a Clinical Movement Science concentration and a minor in Chicano studies. She is planning to pursue her master’s and soon after her PhD. Her areas of research interest include looking at how infants and children see and understand the world, how socioeconomic status affects the physical, mental development, and psychological states, as well as the impact of culture and race on a child’s overall development (physical & mental such as formation of relationships & social group). Outside of the lab, Juliet enjoys reading, listening to jazz music, a nice cup of matcha, and staying active!

Charlston Stovall (he/they)
Pomona College ’25

Charlston is a senior at Pomona College studying Psychological Science with a minor in Africana Studies. Charlston aims to earn his PhD in Social Psychology with the hopes to answer questions about how children and adults navigate the social world. His research interests pertain to many topics in social and cultural psychology such as how stereotypes might become salient across development, group dynamics, and how the aspect of culture may influence behavior and cognition. For fun Charlston enjoys working out, reading, and binge watching TV-shows!

Haowei Peng (she/her)
Post-Bacc RA

I recently received my Ed.M. in Human Development and Education from Harvard GSE in May 2024. I’m interested in understanding how individuals develop their cognition of self, emotion, and social relationships within the contexts of daily interactions involving their close others, especially caregivers. Outside of the lab, I enjoy reading, cooking, and watching all kinds of movies & TV shows!

More RAs to be added soon!

Kaitlyn Tsai
Class of 2024

Leticia Sefia
Class of 2024

Nami Enkhbat
Class of 2025

Andrea Ventura
Boston University ’24

Andrea was a RA in the lab, where she helped conduct research on infants’ and toddlers’ reasoning about social relationships. Andrea graduated from Boston University with a BA in International Relations in May 2024, and is currently pursing an MA/EdS in School Psychology at Tufts University. In her free time, Andrea enjoys weight training, watching basketball, and playing the guitar.