THE CUSP LAB

IN GOOD

COMPANY.

Dr. Chad Danyluck // Principal Investigator

Dr. Chad Danyluck is an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at Carleton University and the director of the CUSP Lab.

He is a social psychophysiologist whose research focuses on the interpersonal processes that support or undermine health and well-being in underrepresented communities — with particular attention to Indigenous peoples. His work explores how subjective experience, social behaviour, and physiological responses interact to shape meaningful human connection in diverse societies.

His Methods: To pursue these questions, Dr. Danyluck uses ecologically grounded methods, including community-based research, field studies, and dyadic, as well as group-based designs. His research often incorporates psychophysiological measurement and advanced quantitative approaches such as structural equation and multilevel modeling. He is committed to open science practices, including pre-registration, preprints, and the sharing of data and analytic code.

His Aim: Ultimately, his aim is to deepen our understanding of how relationships function across lines of difference — and to help build a foundation for safer, healthier, and more fulfilling lives in marginalized and underrepresented communities.

DR. DANYLUCK’S CV

LAB MANAGERS

Shine Soki // Lab Manager

Alyssa Wong Guitard // Assistant Lab Manager

Alyssa is completing a BA Honours in Psychology, focusing on Social and Personality Psychology with a stream in Mental Health and Well-Being, as well as minoring in Health Sciences. She has always been passionate about understanding the social determinants of mental well-being and learning how to support others during difficult times. Alyssa plans to pursue graduate studies in counselling. Alyssa is currently expanding her research interests. Currently, she is interested in the usage of social media communities on mental health and the social-psycho-physiological responses in individuals. At the CUSP Lab, Alyssa is involved in research for the Couples and Intimacy Study (CIS), where she assists with various aspects of data collection and participant coordination. Alyssa is passionate about exploring interpersonal dynamics, mental health, and emotional well-being, and she hopes to continue contributing to research that deepens our understanding of human connection and psychological health.

Shannon Enke // Lab Manager

Shannon is completing a BA Honours in Psychology at Carleton University, specializing in Social and Personality Psychology with a stream in Mental Health and Well-Being. After ten years in business consulting and project management, she returned to academia to explore her interests in holistic approaches to mental health and well-being. Specifically, she is interested in biopsychosocial models that consider how perceptions, physical health, and social connection influence psychological functioning. At the CUSP Lab, Shannon is involved in research examining the impacts of interpersonal and intergroup similarity in cross-group relations. She also contributes to projects exploring meta-perception and social anxiety. Shannon plans to pursue graduate studies and continue contributing to research that supports integrative, evidence-based approaches to mental health.

Shashoto Modak // Assistant Lab Manager

GRADUATE STUDENTS

Muntaha Panhwar // MA student

Muntaha Panhwar is an M.A. student examining the psychological and social experiences of marginalized communities, focusing on identity, discrimination, and well-being. She explores how identity processes shape stress responses, particularly through the HPA axis and cardiovascular biomarkers, and whether ethnic identification mitigates or exacerbates the effects of discrimination. This work contributes to understanding health disparities among marginalized groups. Additionally, she studies workplace inclusion and ableism, investigating ways to reduce prejudice against individuals with visual disabilities. By examining shared and distinct identity perceptions, she identifies conditions that foster belonging and improve workplace relationships. Overall, her research integrates social identity theory, stress physiology, and intergroup relations to promote resilience, reduce discrimination, and advance social equity.

Kaya Scherr // MA student

Kaya Scherr is an M.A. student primarily looking at vicarious discrimination among racial minority couples. She is investigating how racial discrimination against one member of a couple has a vicarious impact on the other couple member. She is also investigating the impact sustained meditation practice has on the functional connections between regions in the brain. Kaya is further working to better understand the barriers and social challenges visually impaired people face when working with sighted people in the workplace. Additionally, she is assisting on several projects which look at physiological synchrony under different circumstances. Overall, Kaya is working on projects that look at discrimination, minority stress, and human flourishing. Her research focuses broadly on the study of improving human wellbeing through a variety of avenues.

Damian Ganbold // MA student

Damian is a researcher specializing in systematic reviews, currently leading a project that examines how experimental manipulations of discrimination influence stress and physiological responses. He also authored a systematic review on life satisfaction among Japanese adolescents, using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) to explore educational and social predictors. Damian’s master’s thesis investigates how autonomic nervous system dysregulation contributes to hypertension risk, using both lab and field-based methods. Across his work, he apply experimental designs and multilevel modeling to better understand psychological stress, discrimination, and well-being.

Nissa Doyle // MA student

Nissa is a M.A. student who just finished an Honours B.Sc. in Psychology. Her undergraduate thesis explored stress in close relationships and the connections to an individual’s self-concept. Nissa’s graduate work will examine stress and close relationships through both a psychological and physiological lens, particularly physiological synchrony as it pertains to close relationship dynamics. Her work endeavours to shed light on the physiological aspects, such as co-regulation, of psychosocial interactions as well as their importance for one’s sense of social support and personal well-being. Overall, Nissa is fascinated by social relationships and their integral part in the very nature of being human. Currently, Nissa is involved in the Couples Intimacy Study in the lab and will be assuming a principle role in an upcoming study on leadership.

HONORS THESIS STUDENTS

Sandrine Kubwimana

Sandrine Kubwimana is a fourth-year Honours Psychology student and research assistant. She collects and processes psychophysiological signals (heart rate, skin conductance, etc.), recruits and screens dyadic participants, and documents following open-science principles. In the lab’s community-based experiments, she’s sharpening her skills in signal processing and complex data workflows. Sandrine plans to build on these experiences by learning advanced quantitative methods and applying them to develop evidence-based assessment and intervention strategies for stress-related and emotion-regulation disorders, as well as intergroup dynamics.