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About Us
About Us
The Parenting Resilient Kids (PaRK) Lab is a psychology research lab at Mount Royal University, led by Dr. Joanne Park. We study the family and contextual factors that shape child mental health, with a particular focus on childhood ADHD. Our work examines how parenting, family stress, and contemporary challenges, like social media use and climate worry, affect children's development over time. We use a variety of research methods (e.g., longitudinal, experimental, meta-analytic) to understand not just what predicts child outcomes, but how and for whom those processes unfold.
STUDENT HIGHLIGHTS
STUDENT HIGHLIGHTS
2026 Graduate School Acceptances
We are thrilled to celebrate three PaRK Lab members who will be beginning graduate programs in Fall 2026.
Skye Smith (former honours student and volunteer) was accepted into the MSc in School and Applied Child Psychology at the University of Calgary, where she will explore the role of moral injury in first responder parents and its effects on parenting and child mental health.
Aleaha Florence (volunteer) was accepted into the MSc in Neuroscience at Western University, with a collaborative specialization in Machine Learning in Health and Biomedical Sciences. She will use machine learning to investigate how exercise benefits the brain.
Xena Al-Hejji (research coordinator) was accepted into the MSc/PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Calgary, where she plans to take an inclusive approach to understanding how risk and protective factors shape mental health and well-being among neurodivergent youth.
We are incredibly proud of all three and excited to see where their graduate training takes them!
2025-01-30
Dr. Park (Co-investigator) along with researchers from the University of Calgary (Dr. Sheri Madigan, PI and Dr. Suzanne Tough, PI), and co-investigators from across Canada, were recently awarded with a CIHR project grant to investigate adolescent mental health in the face of climate change. Congratulations to the team on this achievement!
2024-10-07
Dr. Park, along with Dr. Cass Foursha-Stevenson and Dr. Michele Wellsby were awarded Endeavour funding from the Faculty of Arts at MRU to establish a child and family research participant registry at MRU. Exciting developments are underway!
2024-06-27
Dr. Park was awarded a SSHRC Insight Development Grant to investigate the effects of social support on parenting and child mental health through a multi-part meta-analytic review. This project will offer several opportunities for students to get involved as research assistants. Stay tuned for updates!
Get Involved
Get Involved
The PaRK Lab periodically offers research assistant positions and volunteer opportunities for MRU psychology students. We also conduct studies involving children and families. Check back here for updates on upcoming opportunities.
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