News Stories
Cybercrime’s hidden toll: How online scams impact mental health
March 10, 2025
VIU student seeking participants for a study on the effect of cybercrime on emotional well-being. Watching a friend fall victim to a cybercrime scam motivated Vancouver Island University (VIU) Psychology student Cala Annala to research how this can impact mental health. “I realized the social implications of that, how there’s a lot of victim blaming and not a whole lot of support,” said Annala... Read more
VIU News & Experts: November 6, 2024
November 6, 2024
Remembrance Day, US election, memory development 🧠 In this issue of VIU news & experts: Re-translating a classic war novel US election results Studying memory development Featured experts All Quiet on the Western Front – re-translated For two years, VIU Professor Emerita Dr. Katharina Rout has been engrossed in a re-translation of Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front. This... Read more
VIU psychology professor researching conversation memory in children
November 4, 2024
The research has important implications for things like reliability of child witness testimony in the justice system. Have you ever been in the middle of telling someone a story when you have the sneaking suspicion that this isn’t the first time you’ve told them this tale? Vancouver Island University (VIU) Psychology Professor Dr. Becky Earhart is researching destination memory – how someone... Read more
Researcher looking for participants for brain injury study
July 22, 2024
Dr. Sandy Shultz aims to improve health outcomes for domestic violence survivors Are you a domestic violence survivor? VIU researcher and neuroscientist Dr. Sandy Shultz is part of a project that aims to improve the diagnosis of brain injury in survivors of intimate partner violence. He’s looking for people to be part of this research. Results will be used to improve health outcomes for domestic... Read more
What is environmental psychology and why is it important?
July 12, 2024
Dr. Lindsay McCunn explains Did you know our physical environments can have a big impact on our health and well-being? Environmental psychologist Dr. Lindsay McCunn, a Vancouver Island University (VIU) Psychology Professor, studies how and why our environments impact individuals and what we can do to improve our relationship with the world around us. She recently shared her knowledge in a Ducks... Read more
Unravelling the mystery of “mommy brain”
March 1, 2024
VIU Psychology Professor Dr. Marla Morden is using innovative eye-tracking technology to conduct her research. Dr. Marla Morden, a Vancouver Island University (VIU) Psychology Professor, is researching the phenomenon commonly called “mommy brain” or “baby brain.” It is typically viewed as a time of cognitive decline with symptoms such as memory loss or brain fog. However, Morden says researchers... Read more
Alum of the Month: Jordyn Monaghan
January 27, 2024
Jordyn Monaghan is passionate about supporting the community with a trauma-informed, harm-reduction and strength-based approach. That passion guided her through her undergraduate degree at VIU, where she studied Psychology and Criminology. Monaghan is now doing a Master of Science in Forensic Psychology at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. We caught up with her to find out more... Read more
What is climate anxiety?
July 28, 2023
Expert Q&A with environmental psychologist Dr. Lindsay McCunn VIU Psychology Professor Dr. Lindsay McCunn Dr. Lindsay McCunn is a VIU Psychology Professor and the Director of VIU’s Environmental Psychology Research Lab. In her role as chair of the environmental psychology section of the Canadian Psychological Association, and as the co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Environmental... Read more
Creating the next generation of treatments for substance abuse disorders
January 23, 2023
VIU Psychology alum Dr. Travis Baker receives $2.5-million grant for research Little did Dr. Travis Baker know when he first came to Vancouver Island University more than 20 years ago that it would be the start of a successful career in researching new treatments for addiction. Now an Assistant Professor at Rutgers University-Newark’s Centre for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, he recently... Read more
VIU Psychology Student Researching Stress, Resilience in Romantic Relationships of Firefighters
February 28, 2022
Emmerson Pollard is investigating how romantic relationships impact firefighters’ ability to cope with stress. Whether it’s work-related stress, a family issue, financial worries or an unexpected challenge, all romantic relationships have their ups and downs. And while much has been written about relationship challenges in general, Vancouver Island University (VIU) student Emmerson Pollard is... Read more