Veronica Whitford

Pronouns: she/her

Considering graduate supervision for the 2027 intake.

Education

• Ph.D. (Experimental Psychology), McGill University
• Postdoctoral Fellowship (Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience), University of Western Ontario
• Postdoctoral Fellowship (Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience), Harvard University & Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Research interests

• Developmental cognitive psychology/neuroscience
• Psycholinguistics

My research investigates the cognitive and neural processes that support language, reading, and related neurocognitive abilities across the lifespan, from early childhood to late adulthood.

I examine these processes across diverse populations with varying linguistic, cognitive, and clinical profiles, including:

• Neurotypical monolingual, bilingual, and multilingual individuals
• Individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions (e.g., autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, developmental dyslexia)
• Individuals experiencing normative (healthy) and non-normative (pathological) cognitive aging (e.g., mild cognitive impairment, early-stage Alzheimer’s disease)
• Individuals with neurological and neurodegenerative disorders (e.g., multiple sclerosis)
• Individuals with mental health conditions (e.g., bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia)

My lab employs a multi-method approach that integrates standardized assessments, behavioural measures, oculomotor measures (eye-tracking), neurophysiological measures (electroencephalography/EEG), and computational approaches (e.g., machine learning).

My lab is committed to promoting equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in all aspects of our research and training environment. We strive to create a supportive and respectful space that values diverse perspectives, experiences, and identities. We actively seek to engage individuals from backgrounds that have historically been marginalized or underrepresented in psychology, and to develop inclusive research practices that reflect and serve the diversity of the communities we study.

Publications

Google Scholar Profile

Teaching

• PSYC 2703: Foundations of Biological Psychology (Online)
• PSYC 3213: Language Development
• PSYC 4773: Topical Seminar in Neuropsychology