Graduates
The MSc and
Graduate students in these programs will have opportunities to conduct cutting-edge research on diverse topics related to the application of psychology to the justice system, such as:
- antisocial personality and psychopathy
- domestic violence
- eyewitness identification
- geographic profiling
- investigative interviewing
- juvenile offenders
- lie detection
- sex offenders
- wrongful conviction
- MSc in Forensic Psychology
- PhD in Forensic Psychology
- Student resources
- Research supervision areas
- Current MSc students
- Current PhD students
- Recent graduates
The Master of Science (MSc) in Forensic Psychology combines disciplinary and specialized study in the field, study in research methods and statistics, and applied to learning experiences to prepare students to work in a variety of settings. Specifically, the program will prepare students for careers related to:
- Administration in provincial and federal programs.
- Advertising and marketing.
Behavioural science and statistical research in government organizations.- Design and evaluation of community programs.
- Research and/or teaching in college and university settings.
- Research and practice in
behavioural science crime units within law enforcement. - Research in mental health institutions, hospital settings, justice-related institutes, correctional facilities, the pharmaceutical industry, and the educational entertainment industry.
- Trial consulting.
Admission
Prospective students must hold a four-year undergraduate degree or equivalent in Psychology or a related field (e.g. Neuroscience, Computer Science, Biology, Criminology) at a recognized institution. Students with both Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees are encouraged to apply.
For more information, visit Forensic Psychology (master's program).
- Administration in provincial and federal programs.
- Advertising and marketing.
Behavioural science and statistical research in government organizations.- Design and evaluation of community programs.
- Research and/or teaching in college and university settings.
- Research and practice in
behavioural science crime units within law enforcement. - Research in mental health institutions, hospital settings, justice-related institutes, correctional facilities, the pharmaceutical industry
and the educational entertainment industry. - Trial consulting.
The program will also allow professionals (e.g. law enforcement officials) to advance in their current fields.
Each year, a small number of undergraduate students may be admitted directly into the
For more information, visit Forensic Psychology (doctoral program).
- See a list of important dates.
- Access the Graduate Academic Calendar.
- Learn more about funding and scholarships.
- See a list of student forms and publications.
- Download the Forensic Psychology Graduate Handbook.
Core Psychology faculty
Faculty |
Research supervision area |
Accepting students |
Contact |
Kimberley Clow, PhD |
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kimberley.clow@ontariotechu.ca | |
Brian Cutler, PhD |
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Joseph Eastwood, PhD |
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joseph.eastwood@ontariotechu.ca | |
Karla Emeno, PhD |
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karla.emeno@ontariotechu.ca | |
Leigh Harkins, PhD |
|
leigh.harkins@ontariotechu.ca | |
Lindsay Malloy, PhD |
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lindsay.malloy@ontariotechu.ca | |
Matthew Shane, PhD |
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matthew.shane@ontariotechu.ca | |
Shannon Vettor, PhD |
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shannon.vettor@ontariotechu.ca |
Core cross-appointed faculty
Faculty |
Research supervision areas |
Accepting students |
Contact |
Shahid Alvi, PhD |
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shahid.alvi@ontariotechu.ca | |
Carla Cesaroni, PhD |
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carla.cesaroni@ontariotechu.ca | |
Sean Forrester, PhD |
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sean.forrester@ontariotechu.ca |
Associate faculty
Faculty |
Research supervision areas |
Accepting students |
Contact |
Ron Hinch, PhD |
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Steven Downing, PhD |
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steven.downing@ontariotechu.ca | |
Karla Dhungana Sainju, PhD |
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karla.dhungana-sainju@ontariotechu.ca | |
Helene LeBlanc, PhD |
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Krystal Martin, PhD |
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krystal.martin@ontariotechu.ca | |
Thomas McMorrow, PhD |
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thomas.mcmorrow@ontariotechu.ca | |
Timothy McTiernan, PhD |
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timothy.mctiernan@ontariotechu.ca | |
Natalie Oman, PhD |
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natalie.oman@ontariotechu.ca | |
Michele Peterson-Badali, PhD |
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Andrea Slane, PhD |
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andrea.slane@ontariotechu.ca | |
Arshia Zaidi, PhD |
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arshia.zaidi@ontariotechu.ca |
Chelsea Blake
Chelsea Blake completed her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Forensic Psychology with a minor in Criminology and Justice at Ontario Tech University. For her undergraduate honours thesis under the supervision of Dr. Amy-May Leach, she researched perceptions of accent and fluency in native and non-native English speakers and how that affected deception-detection decision-making. She is now pursuing her Master of Science in Forensic Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Amy-May Leach. Her research interests for her master's thesis include analyzing the relationship between cognitive load and the components of executive functioning to determine how they affect deception-detection decision-making.
Sarah Kirkpatrick
Sarah recently completed her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Forensic Psychology with a minor in Criminology and Justice here at Ontario Tech University. In her undergraduate thesis, Sarah examined public perceptions of wrongfully convicted offenders. She is currently working towards her master’s in Forensic Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Karla Emeno and Dr. Shannon Vettor. Her research interests include sexual offending, lie detection, and forensic assessment. Sarah hopes to complete her Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology before pursuing a career as a professor and expert witness for the Canadian courts.
Funmilola Ogunseye
Funmilola Ogunseye is currently pursuing a master's degree in Forensic Psychology at Ontario Tech University under the supervision of Dr. Joseph Eastwood. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Lagos, Nigeria.
Over the years, she developed interest in criminal justice, the prison systems and wrongful convictions. Her current research interest revolves around investigative interviewing processes and dynamics. She hopes to pursue a PhD in the long run and further explore the intersection between psychology and the law.
Mari Pullman
Mari completed her undergraduate at King’s University College at Western University in Psychology with a major in Criminology. She hopes to pursue research on geographic profiling and other topics within the umbrella of police and investigative psychology under the supervision of Dr. Karla Emeno. Mari hopes to complete her PhD at Ontario Tech before working as a consultant with Canadian law enforcement.
Carisa Collins
Carisa Collins is in her fourth year of the PhD program under the supervision of Dr. Leigh Harkins. She holds a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Psychology, from Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, and a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
Her research experience has been varied, with manuscripts published in two different fields, but her current research interests include sexual offenders and paraphilias. Her dissertation research is largely focused on non-offending pedophiles and the challenges and issues they may face. Her work is adding to a new and growing body of literature supporting the understanding that pedophile and child molester are not synonymous.
Carisa has additional research experience volunteering at the Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences where she has partaken in research projects examining protective factors for mentally-ill offenders and the influence of the subjective experience of restrictiveness on treatment outcomes.
Quintan Crough
Quintan is a PhD student working under the supervision of Dr. Joseph Eastwood in the Applied Law Enforcement Research and Training (ALERT) Laboratory. He received his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology from Carleton University and a Master of Science in Forensic Psychology at Ontario Tech University. Quintan’s current research interests include suspect interviewing, rapport-building and memory.
William Denomme
William is a PhD student in Dr. Matthew Shane's Clinical and Affective Neuroscience Laboratory for Discovery and Innovation (CANdiLAB), studying neurocognitive dysfunctions in substance use disorders, and how they may correlate with other mental disorders, including personality disorders (e.g. psychopathy) and psychotic and mood disorders. You can follow his research via his ResearchGate profile.
Cassandre Dion Larivière
Cassandre received her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Applied Psychology from Bishop’s University and a Master of Science in Forensic Psychology from Ontario Tech University. She is currently pursuing her PhD and is working under the supervision of Dr. Joseph Eastwood in the Applied Law Enforcement Research and Training (ALERT) Laboratory. Cassandre’s research examines factors that influence the effectiveness of investigative interviews, such as rapport building and virtual interviews, as well as investigative interviews conducted with older adults.
Cristina Ferrara
Cristina is currently in the third year of her PhD. Her research area is broadly police, but more specifically to do with the influence of social media on public perceptions of police. Other research areas include police stress, police body-worn cameras, and social role theory.
Supervisor: Dr. Karla Emeno.
Karli Hamilton
Karli Hamilton completed her Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Acadia University in 2018 and her Master of Science (MSc) in Forensic Psychology at Ontario Tech University in 2021. She is currently in the first year of her PhD in Forensic Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Kimberley Clow. Her research focuses on perceptions of exonerees. More specifically, Karli’s MSc thesis focused on how emotions expressed by an exoneree, emotions experienced by participants, and empathic concern influence willingness to help exonerees.
Taya Henry
Taya is a PhD student in Forensic Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Kimberley Clow. Taya received an Honours Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Psychology, from the University of British Columbia Okanagan, and a Master of Science in Forensic Psychology from Ontario Tech University. Taya’s research interests include race and media effects on wrongful conviction.
Annmarie Khairalla
Annmarie is a PhD student in the Forensic Psychology program. Under the supervision of Dr. Brian Cutler, Annmarie's research focuses on the effects of body-worn cameras on memory. Her research interests are plea decision-making, eyewitness memory, and body-worn cameras.
Jeffrey Kaplan
Jeff Kaplan is a teaching assistant, research assistant, and PhD student affiliated with the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities at Ontario Tech University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree with a double major in Psychology and Criminal Justice from the University of Winnipeg, and a master's degree in Forensic Psychology from Ontario Tech University. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, Canadian Psychological Association, and American Psychology-Law Society.
Under the supervision of Dr. Brian Cutler, Jeff's PhD research is in the area of assessing the psychology behind interrogation techniques and coercion. His research experience includes not only studies conducted in an academic context, but also public-sector evaluations and private-sector market research. Past clients include Health Canada, the Correctional Services of Canada, the Manitoba Provincial Government, AAA/CAA, MTS (now Bell Telecom) and many others. His areas of research have been highly varied, as he often focuses on synthesizing research from disparate areas of the social sciences. This includes research projects involving eyewitness identification accuracy, offender rehabilitation, evolutionary psychology, methods of supported employment for individuals with mental illnesses, and the effects and correlates of workplace bullying and harassment.
Jeff Kaplan provides literature reviews, survey design, and data analysis services for public- and private-sector organizations on a contract basis.
Kristina Shatokhina
Kristina Shatokhina is pursuing her PhD at Ontario Tech University; under the supervision of Dr. Leigh Harkins, she investigates multiple-perpetrator sexual offending (MPSOs). More specifically, she aims to explore the group dynamics that exist among the co-accused and the factors that predict offense-related outcomes. Her Master of Science research, also supervised by Dr. Harkins, focused on applying the Integrated Risk Assessment and Treatment System (IRATS) to the prediction of recidivism and treatment attrition among those who commit sexual offenses. Over the last several years, Kristina has worked and volunteered for organizations including the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC), the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) – Forensics Division, and the Salvation Army – Correctional and Justice Services.
Katrina-Ray Villeneuve
Katrina is a Forensic Psychology PhD student working under the supervision of Dr. Amy-May Leach. She completed her Master's of Science in Forensic Psychology at Ontario Tech. Her Master's thesis examined the ability to detect deceit at various thin slice lengths. Currently, Katrina is examining the effects of interviewer/interviewee rapport building and interpreter presence on deception detection.
Lyndsay Woolridge
Lyndsay is a third-year PhD student in Ontario Tech's Forensic Psychology program, working under the supervision of Dr. Amy Leach. She completed her master’s degree in Linguistics at York University and received her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Linguistics and Psychology from Queen’s University. Her primary research area focuses on deception detection in non-native English speakers and the implications of observer biases when making veracity judgments in legal settings. As a secondary focus, Lyndsay has also conducted several studies related to deception and attributions of arousal. Currently, she is investigating the impact of interpreter use on deception detection during courtroom examinations.
2022
Carina Cardoso, MSc, #RodneyReed: A content and thematic analysis of a trending innocence campaign (supervisor: Dr. Kimberley Clow).
Christina Connors, PhD, Toward Assessing and Improving the Protective Efficacy of Canadians’ Interrogation Rights: Misinformation and Caution Comprehension (supervisor: Dr. Joseph Eastwood).
Laleh Dadgardoust, PhD, Improving Understanding of Rape Proclivity (supervisor: Dr. Leigh Harkins).
Alexandra Grave, MSc, Perceptions of Police Use of Force: The Role of Context-Specific Factors, Police Legitimacy, and Belief in a Just World (supervisor: Dr. Karla Emeno).
Cassandre Dion Larivière, MSc, The Effects of Rapport Building on Information Disclosure in Virtual Interviews (supervisor: Dr. Joseph Eastwood).
Ana Karen Espinosa Becerra, MSc, Mock Jurors’ Perceptions of Children Testifying via a Language Interpreter (supervisor: Dr. Lindsay Malloy).
Elizabeth Elliott, PhD, What Lies Beneath: An Examination of the Underlying Components of Deception Detection (supervisor: Dr. Amy Leach).
Jingyuan Sophie Li, MSc, Individuals’ Empathic Responses to Exonerees’ Emotional and Physical Suffering (supervisor: Dr. Kimberley Clow).
Lillian Rodriguez Steen, PhD, Examining Interview Ground Rules in Formal Interviews with Children (supervisor: Dr. Lindsay Malloy).
Danielle Rumschik, PhD, An Analysis of Face Matching Accuracy and Related Variables: A Meta-Analysis and Two Follow-Up Studies (supervisor: Dr. Amy Leach).
Isabelle Simard, PhD, Neural Markers of Antisocial Behaviour in Offenders and their Relationship with Risk-Factors of Offending (supervisor: Dr. Matthew Shane).
Mark Snow, PhD, Negative Emotion and Eyewitness Memory (supervisor: Dr. Joseph Eastwood).
Katrina Villeneuve, MSc, The Impact of Thin(ner) Slicing on Deception Detection (supervisor: Dr. Amy Leach).
2021
Korri Bickle, PhD, Youth Correctional Officer Orientation and Opinions on Relationships with Youth (supervisor: Dr. Carla Cesaroni).
Daniella Filoso, MSc, Parents’ perceptions of their children’s lie telling in the context of sibling relationships (supervisor: Dr. Lindsay Malloy).
Rebecca Fisico, MSc, Why Would Someone Send Me That?! Exploring the Prevalence, Contexts, Motivations, and Predictors of Sending Unsolicited Sexual Images (supervisor: Dr. Leigh Harkins).
Siobhan Green, MSc, Perceptions of Crime Changes, Well-Being, and Personal Safety During the COVID-19 Pandemic (supervisor: Dr. Karla Emeno).
Lindsay Groat, PhD, Influencing Motivation to Empathize in Individuals with Heightened Psychopathic Traits: Neural and Behavioural Assessment of Empathizing with Others (supervisor: Dr. Matthew Shane).
Karli Hamilton, MSc, Willingness to Help: How the Portrayal and Perception of a Wrongfully Convicted Individual Affects People’s Willingness to Help Exonerees (supervisor: Dr. Kimberley Clow).
Taya Henry, MSc, A Content and Thematic Analysis of Reddit Discussions about When They See Us (supervisors: Dr. Kimberley Clow, Dr. Lesley Zannella).
Ryan Lahay, MSc, Measuring Cues to Deception: A Multitrait-Multimethod Analysis (supervisor: Dr. Amy Leach).
2020
Renee Bencic, MSc, Impact of Terrorism Awareness Training on Civilian Likelihood to Report Pre-Incident Behaviours (supervisor: Dr. Karla Emeno; committee member: Dr. Leigh Harkins).
Sara Caro Arroyave, MSc, School Resource Officers: Interrogation training, developmental knowledge, and questioning practices (supervisor: Dr. Lindsay; committee member: Dr. Karla Emeno).
Femi Carrington, MSc, Increasing Experience Sharing Through Regulation Instructions (supervisor: Dr. Matthew Shane).
Quintan Crough, MSc (supervisor: Dr. Joe Eastwood; committee member: Dr. Karla Emeno).
Kristina Shatokhina, MSc, Body-Worn Camera Footage in the Courtroom: Recidivism and Treatment Attrition among Persons who Sexually Offend (PSOs): Applying the Integrated Risk Assessment and Treatment System (IRATS) (supervisor: Dr. Leigh Harkins).
Rangina Wardak, MSc, An Examination of the Effects of BWC Expert Testimony on Perceptions of Police Officer Trustworthiness and Verdicts (supervisor: Dr. Karla Emeno; committee member: Dr. Brian Cutler).