SES Lab Team
Feel free to get to know our team members!
Principal Investigator
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Camelia Hostinar
Dr. Hostinar is the lab director and an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at UC Davis. She completed her doctoral training in Developmental Psychology at the University of Minnesota (Institute of Child Development) and her postdoctoral training at Northwestern University. Dr. Hostinar investigates the ways in which childhood poverty and other forms of early-life adversity influence later development and health. She has particular interest in protective factors that may buffer children and adolescents from chronic stress and subsequent physical or mental health problems. Her work examines developmental processes at multiple levels of analysis, incorporating endocrine and immune biomarkers, electrophysiological data, genetic assays, and behavioral measures. She seeks to improve understanding of the role of early-life stress in shaping self-regulatory skills, and to illuminate how stress-buffering processes such as supportive social relationships exert their effects. Contact: cehostinar@ucdavis.edu |
Graduate Students
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LillyBelle Deer
LillyBelle is a PhD student in the developmental psychology program at UC Davis. She grew up in Honolulu, HI and completed her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Claremont McKenna College in 2015. Her research interests include the role of early life stress and adversity in mental and physical health, as well as in academic outcomes. She also has a strong interest in protective factors that may play a role in buffering against stress and adversity, such as cultural or familial factors. Outside of the lab, she enjoys engaging in aquatic sports, trying new recipes, and playing with her herd of dogs. Contact: lkdeer@ucdavis.edu |
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Nick Alen
Nick is a PhD student in the developmental psychology program at UC Davis. He is a Bay Area local who completed his Bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. Nick’s research interests include parenting, poverty and autonomic nervous system stress physiology, and their relation to social behavior and health outcomes. In his free time Nick enjoys playing guitar and spending time with his family. Contact: nvalen@ucdavis.edu |
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Anna Parenteau
Anna is a PhD student in the developmental psychology program at UC Davis. She completed her Bachelor's degree in child psychology at the University of Minnesota Institute of Child Development. Anna is interested in studying how early life stress and environmental factors may impact psychobiology and health outcomes in children and adolescents. In addition, she aims to examine ways in which children can be protected from the deleterious effects of stressful environments, through mechanisms of social support, emotion regulation, and characteristics that allow parents to effectively buffer stress responses in their children. Outside of the lab, Anna likes to explore her new surroundings in Northern California, ride her bike, and spend time with friends. Contact: aparenteau@ucdavis.edu |
Research Assistants
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Jessica Waltmon
Jessica is a fourth-year undergraduate transfer student at UC Davis majoring in Psychology. She also an RA in Dr. Munakata’s Cognition in Context lab. Jessica is interested in research looking at fixed vs. growth mindset and how this can impact academic success. She is also interested in how people’s perceptions can vary with real- world knowledge. Jessica hopes to use research to find innovative methods to help disadvantaged populations. She is hoping her time in Dr. Hostinar’s lab will help her narrow down her research interests as she plans on pursuing a PhD in research, as a first-generation college student. Contact: jawaltmon@ucdavis.edu |
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Adele Nemer
Adele is a second-year undergraduate student pursuing a major in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and a minor in Spanish. She is interested in the physiological manifestations of psychological processes, and the potential applications of new psychological, scientific, and social research. She hopes that by gaining research experience in this lab she can develop professional skills and academic direction. Beyond that, she hopes to pursue a career in which she can make a positive impact on society. In her free time, Adele likes to explore nature, listen to old music, and spend time with her family and friends. Contact: aanemer@ucdavis.edu |
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Brianna Fu
Brianna is a third-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Human Development and minoring in Education. She is particularly interested in developmental psychology, specifically the impact of early childhood stress on cognitive and behavioral development. Brianna loves to work with children and is currently volunteering at a child therapy center. By gaining experience and insight in Dr. Hostinar's lab, she hopes to pursue a career in pediatric occupational therapy. In her free time, Brianna enjoys spending quality time with her friends, family, and Netflix. Contact: btfu@ucdavis.edu |
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Indira D'Souza
Indira is a second-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Global Disease Biology with minors in Music and Public Health Sciences. She is interested in health disparities, the social determinants of health, and how policy can affect differences in health outcomes. She loves working with kids, and has spent time as a taekwondo instructor and summer school science aide. Indira is also involved with R.I.V.E.R. at UC Davis, Students for Reproductive Freedom, and volunteering at Joan Viteri Memorial Clinic. She hopes to pursue a Master’s degree in Public Health in the future. In her free time, Indira enjoys singing in Davis Chamber Choir, baking, and spending time with friends. Contact: iadsouza@ucdavis.edu |
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Marcela Ohlgart
Marcela is a third-year undergraduate student at UC Davis, majoring in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience. She is interested in mental health in youth and adolescents and how mental illnesses can affect their development. Her aspirations are to pursue a career in the health field working with children. In her free time Marcela likes to read, listen to music, work out, travel, and go on adventures with her friends. Contact: mjohlgart@ucdavis.edu |
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Sydney Yi
Sydney is a fourth-year transfer student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Anthropology with a Sociocultural emphasis. She is interested in researching the effects of transgenerational trauma on the Cambodian children of Khmer Rouge survivors. By gaining experience in Dr. Hostinar's lab, she hopes to better understand the effects of stress on children and the development of coping mechanisms and resiliency. She plans to earn her PhD in clinical psychology and work with children as a Child Psychologist. She has experience as a Registered Behavior Technician for children on the Autism Spectrum and is certified in Youth Mental Health First Aid. In her free time, she enjoys writing, reading, drawing, and weight lifting. Contact: sydyi@ucdavis.edu |
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Michelle Wong
Michelle is a third-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior and minoring in Psychology. She is interested in how stress affects mental health, and the intersections between the physiology and psychology of the human brain. After her undergraduate career, Michelle hopes to pursue a medical degree while also studying medical journalism or narrative medicine. She is currently a journalist for the California Aggie, UC Davis’ student-run newspaper. In her spare time, she likes to listen to music, volunteer with children, watch films, and spend quality time with friends & family. Contact: mhlwong@ucdavis.edu |
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Mickey Sanchez
Mickey is a third-year undergraduate student at UC Davis double majoring in Psychology and Art History. She is interested in applying the arts into psychological research to promote mindfulness and mental health. By gaining experience in the SES lab, Mickey hopes to continue research on art education and how it can be beneficial to childhood development. Additionally, she plans on attending graduate school to further her research journey to eventually get her PhD. In the Winter of 2020, Mickey and a group of other talented students opened an exhibition in the Manetti Shrem Museum, called REST IS POWER, that focuses on the importance of sleep and rest for marginalized people. Currently, Mickey is the Art Show Director for the Aggie Public Arts Committee (APAC) in which she puts together shows promoting student artists. In her free time, she enjoys reading, journaling, photography, hiking, and spending time with family and friends. Contact: micsanchez@ucdavis.edu |
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Jazleen Nijjar
Jazleen is a fourth-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Biological Psychology. She is interested in promoting awareness of mental health issues and addressing sociocultural determinants, primarily within Sikh and Punjabi communities. Her passion for mental health advocacy originates from growing up in the Punjabi community, where there is limited emphasis on mental health education. After her undergraduate career, Jazleen aspires to pursue a M.D/D.O degree to become a physician that advocates for underserved and vulnerable populations. Through Dr. Hostinar’s Lab, she hopes to gain insight on the developmental outcomes of stress and plans to utilize this knowledge to help inspire future health care initiatives within her community. She is currently a part of the UCD Mental Health Initiative on campus, a research assistant in the EMRAP program, and a medical scribe. In her free time, she enjoys exploring nature, spending quality time with loved ones, and painting. Contact: jaznijjar@ucdavis.edu |
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Cliff Huang
Cliff is a fourth-year student majoring in Psychological with a biological emphasis. He is interested in learning more about others, like getting to know more about you. His aspirations are to become a psychiatrist, help individuals with mental and physical disabilities, and eventually offer free mental health service to those with economic difficulties. He loves to help others while using experiences, skills, and knowledge he learned to best assist the individual. Lastly, he enjoys socializing with others, so feel free to reach out about anything! Contact: drchuang@ucdavis.edu |
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Maya Sahtout
Maya is a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Biological Sciences and minoring in Anthropology with a Sociocultural emphasis. She is interested in how the environment and a variety of stressors can impact the health of individuals and in the social determinants of health. Through Dr. Hositnar's lab, she hopes to gain insight on the implications of stress on the development of individuals, especially in children. She plans on going into the medical field and into public health in order to serve underserved populations and diminish health disparities. She has worked at a daycare for the past three years, volunteers in Shifa Community Clinic, and she is a peer mentor for students in the University Honors Program. In her free time, Maya loves to read, watch Netflix, hike, travel, and play soccer. Contact: masahtout@ucdavis.edu |
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Selena Alvarez
Selena is a third-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Psychology and Human Development with a minor in Education. She is interested in how adverse childhood, experiences, poverty, and chronic environmental stressors affect child and adolescent development. She aspires to help at-risk and disadvantaged children/adolescents, whether that be through teaching, counseling, or social work. In her free time, Selena enjoys listening to music, reading, playing various instruments (clarinet, saxophone, piano), and spending time with close friends and family. Contact: sialvarez@ucdavis.edu |
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Annette Wong-Toi
Annette is a second-year undergraduate student at UC Davis, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Education. After graduation, she hopes to continue her studies in graduate school, and work with children and adolescents in a clinical or educational setting. She is interested in the factors that contribute to the development of a child's personality, as well as the role that humor plays in someone's social and emotional well-being. Through Dr. Hostinar's lab, she hopes to learn more about how a child's family can affect the way they experience and manage stress. When she has free time, Annette loves playing piano, hanging out with friends, and taking naps! Contact: awongtoi@ucdavis.edu |
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Kristen Li
Kristen is a third-year undergraduate student pursuing a major in Psychology with biology emphasis and a minor in Neuroscience. She is interested in both behavioral and physiological changes in our brain and other systems in response to interference. As well as how social interactions and emotions, such as stress or traumatic events, affect our development among the underrepresented groups particularly. She also works at the Healthy Emotions, Relations and Development Lab run by Dr. Paul Hastings. Kristen hopes to gain more insights through Dr. Hostinar's Lab and pursue a career in clinical psychology. In her free time, she enjoys exercising, listening to music, and spending quality time with friends and family. Contact: jkqli@ucdavis.edu |
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Diya Nambiar
Diya is a first-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Psychology with Biological Emphasis. She is interested in finding methods to help people cope with mental illness and studying the implications of cultural and social factors. After completing her undergraduate education, Diya aims to pursue a medical degree and become a psychiatrist to help individuals understand and validate the importance of mental health. Through research, she hopes to gain hands-on experience, better understand how our surrounding environment can impact our mental health, and explore various fields of psychology. In her free time, Diya enjoys singing, volunteering, being active, dancing, going on adventures, cooking, and socializing! Contact: dsnambiar@ucdavis.edu |
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Rajveer Sahota
Rajveer is a second-year undergraduate student at UC Davis, majoring in Biological Sciences and minoring in Public Health. After graduating from UC Davis, Rajveer plans to pursue graduate school to further her education. She is interested in health disparities and how stressful environments may impact the development of adolescents. Not only this, but she is interested in raising awareness about mental health and destigmatizing it as well. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, friends, and her dog! Contact: rksahota@ucdavis.edu |
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Emma Godfrey
Emma is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Psychology. She is interested in the effects of trauma, particularly from early childhood. Through involvement in Dr. Hostinar’s lab she hopes to gain deeper insight into the mind-body connection, and how such an understanding can be used to release and heal emotions that are stored in the body. She hopes to gain a background in eastern approaches to physical and mental wellbeing, as well as create educational resources to allow underprivileged populations access to education about mental health practices. Her other passions include creating visual art, writing poetry, yoga, meditation, and connecting to nature. Contact: ecgodfrey@ucdavis.edu |
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Anthony Lagunda
Anthony is a fourth-year undergraduate student at UC Davis majoring in Psychology and minoring in Public Health Sciences. He has a passion for mental health awareness and criminal justice. After his undergraduate career, he aspires to conduct research that studies the mental health of disadvantaged populations, such as those in America’s correctional facilities and rural communities. As a research assistant at the SES Lab, he hopes to learn more about how the contexts in which children are raised (e.g., parenting styles, abuse, living conditions) affect them later in life. In his spare time, he enjoys running, playing video games, and watching stand-up comedy. Contact: amlagunda@ucdavis.edu |
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Bhakti Patwardhan
Bhakti is a third year undergraduate at UC Davis majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior; and she plans to minor in psychology. She is also an undergraduate research intern in Dr. Bliss-Moreau's Comparative and Translational Affective Science lab, and has extensive experience volunteering in the healthcare environment. She is interested in the interplay between physiological factors such as neural cascades, cortisol levels, or health, and psychosocial factors such as constructs of emotion, stress, and perceptions of social environment. She aspires to pursue a PhD and eventually become a university professor. In her free time, she loves sketching, listening to instrumental music, and reading mystery and fantasy books. Contact: bpatwardhan@ucdavis.edu |
Lab Alumni
Adam Nissen
Grant Shields
Katie Wyant-Stein
Jency Umana Linares
Hollie Crandell
Austin Dalmasso
Julianna Kirkpatrick
Shoshannah Bobritsky
Elis Feyzieva
Mona Karimi
Tina Le
Ann Cheng
Alison Luck
Jing Li
Jocelynn Morales-Martinez
Gurleen Lamba
Amanda Rosenberg
Jennifer La
Alexsis Andrade
Marisa Galvez
Rana McBee
Tina Shafa
Erin Morrison
Rachel Petrie
Anthony Riddle
Willa Kurland
Shannon Trinh
Zev Minow
Antonia Cartwright
Jenna DeKeater
Aleasha Jhanjar
Rebecca Cho
Temitope Awosika
Yuvraj Khanna
Grant Shields
Katie Wyant-Stein
Jency Umana Linares
Hollie Crandell
Austin Dalmasso
Julianna Kirkpatrick
Shoshannah Bobritsky
Elis Feyzieva
Mona Karimi
Tina Le
Ann Cheng
Alison Luck
Jing Li
Jocelynn Morales-Martinez
Gurleen Lamba
Amanda Rosenberg
Jennifer La
Alexsis Andrade
Marisa Galvez
Rana McBee
Tina Shafa
Erin Morrison
Rachel Petrie
Anthony Riddle
Willa Kurland
Shannon Trinh
Zev Minow
Antonia Cartwright
Jenna DeKeater
Aleasha Jhanjar
Rebecca Cho
Temitope Awosika
Yuvraj Khanna