Evelyn Mercado, Ph.D.
FAM Lab Director
Dr. Mercado is an Assistant Professor in the Psychological and Brain Sciences Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her research program is centered on understanding the experiences of families from ethnic and immigrant backgrounds. She is particularly interested in understanding how interpersonal emotion dynamics such as shared physiology and affect influence psychological adjustment. Her research employs both naturalistic and experimental methods that involve self-report, observational, and physiological measures (e.g., cortisol).
Graduate Research Assistants
Marielena Barbieri
Marielena graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in psychology. She is currently a fifth-year graduate student working primarily with Dr. Evelyn Mercado. Marielena's research interests include implicit and explicit attitudes toward STEM and stereotype inoculation in adolescents.
Hector Sosa
Hector is a third-year Social Psychology Ph.D. student working with Dr. Nilanjana (Buju) Dasgupta and Dr. Evelyn Mercado. His primary areas of research focus on supporting underrepresented/underserved students in STEM, and how social context influences implicit biases and intergroup relations.
As a former McNair Scholar and a student in the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), Hector is interested in creating interventions and policies to better support underrepresented students’ retention and success in schools.
Additionally, he is interested in applying data science techniques to explore social issues in public schools. He is also looking to incorporate computational methods like web scraping in my research. Generally, he is interested in using data science to do social good in several spaces.
Aylin Fernandez
Aylin is a second-year Ph.D. student working with Dr. Evelyn Mercado. She received her B.A. in Psychology and Spanish from Texas State University in May 2022. Aylin's research interests aim to address disparities in Latino communities and is also interested in understanding the role of parent-adolescent dyadic relationships in adolescent development.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Samir Kassem
Leslie Hernandez
I’m Leslie, a senior Psychology major and Anthropology minor. This is my third semester with the FAM lab; I’m a part of the Latinx Biobehavioral Team and have recently also begun working on the Windsor study. My areas of interest lie mostly in social and developmental psychology, specifically relationship dynamics, and factors that contribute to childhood resilience. After undergrad, I hope to continue in research and apply to a graduate program in psychology. In my free time, I love to read, listen to music, and spend time with friends and family.
Sofia Murphy-Genao
Ketny-Julie Sousa
I am an undergraduate senior getting a double degree In Psychology and Portuguese. After graduation, I plan on pursuing my PhD in Psychology to work in research. I joined the FAM lab Fall of 2023. I am excited to be working with colleagues, who also are passionate about helping minority populations be represented! I hope to help the lab in recruiting many more families and hope to learn skills that will come in handy post undergrad. In my free time I enjoy baking and cooking Brazilian dishes. I also love being in nature either hiking or watching sunsets by the water.
Lucia Navarro Saenz
Lauren Haley Santa Ines
Roger Hauck
Roher is a sophomore psychology major and minor. He is interested in the interface between clinical and social psychology, specifically how groups and relationships can impact an individual's mental health. Roger is especially interested in the FAM Lab’s focus on how family relationships can build resilience. Roger plans to go to graduate school for clinical psychology and hopes to open his own psychiatric hospital one day.
Catherine Prasad
I’m a senior at UMass Amherst majoring in psychology on the neuroscience track. After graduation, I plan on working in a research lab while I apply for graduate programs in neuroscience. I’ve been in the FAM lab for two semesters, working mainly on the Windsor study where we study how discrimination in adolescents can affect academic outcomes as well as their mental health. Outside of the lab, I love to read and write!
FAM Lab Alumni & Associates
Stylianos Syropoulos, Class of 2023
Rebecca Williams, Class of 2022
Charles Pisaturo III, Class of 2022
Susan Reum, Class of 2022
Marina Boulos, Class of 2022
Jessica Marmolejos, Class of 2021
Jessica Lau, Class of 2021
Kelley Almada, Class of 2021
Kimberly Sikorski, Class of 2021
Zev Jarrett, Class of 2021
Tyler Rice, Class of 2021
David Gertz, Class of 2021
Grace Perry, Class of 2021
Ellie Horn, Class of 2021
Kolby Silva, Class of 2021
Sydney Beaulac, Class of 2020
Saiyak Rakeeb, Class of 2019
David Hincapie, Class of 2019
Lily Martin, Class of 2019
Samantha Price, Class of 2019
Kai Basler - Chang, Summer 2019 RA Intern
Rachel Chong, Class of 2019
Jordan Semple, Class of 2019
Sanjana Kadirvel, Class of 2018