People

principal investigator

Office: 212 Pryale Hall, Oakland University Main Campus.

Email: welling[at]oakland[dot]edu

Dr. Lisa Welling, Ph.D.

Dr. Lisa Welling is a tenured Professor at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan (USA). Previously, Dr. Welling attended the University of Aberdeen (Scotland) where she completed the requirements for a Masters in Research (M.Res.) and was transferred into the Ph.D. program. Her Ph.D., entitled Individual Differences in Face Preferences, was completed in 2008 under the supervision of Dr. Ben Jones in the Face Research Laboratory and was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). Dr. Welling was then able to secure an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) one-year postdoctoral fellowship in the Face Research Laboratory under the supervision of Drs. Ben Jones and Lisa DeBruine. Thereafter, she completed a 3-year American Institute of Bisexuality (AIB) funded postdoctoral fellowship at the Pennsylvania State University with Dr. David Puts in collaboration with Dr. William Crowley at the Harvard University Medical School. Dr. Welling has presented her work at international conferences in various locations around the world, such as Japan, Russia, Italy, and France, and has given invited lectures at prestigious institutions, such as Harvard University, McMaster University, and University College of London. She joined the faculty at Oakland University in the Autumn of 2012, was awarded the Oakland University New Investigator Research Excellence Award in 2015, received tenure in 2017, was awarded the Oakland University Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award in 2018, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2023. In addition to having published more than 90 journal articles, she has produced two edited volumes (Evolutionary Perspectives on Social Psychology by Zeigler-Hill, Welling, & Shackelford, and The Oxford Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology and Behavioral Endocrinology by Welling & Shackelford), several book chapters, and various other publications. She currently serves as an Associate Editor for Evolutionary Psychology and Frontiers in Psychology. She is also on the Editorial Boards for the journals Archives of Sexual Behavior, Evolutionary Psychological Science, and Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, and was elected the Secretary/Archivist for the Human Behavior and Evolution Society in 2021, 2023, and 2025. She focusses on mate choice and is particularly interested in how hormones affect different aspects of our mating-related behavior, including mate selection, preferences, and human sexuality.

current graduate students

rich holler

Rich Holler is a doctoral student who joined the Welling Research Lab in Fall 2018. He earned his B.A. in Psychology (minor in Biology) at Penn State University, where he worked in Dr. Lynn Liben's, Dr. Mark Shriver's, and Dr. David Puts' labs. Thereafter, he worked at the University of Texas at Austin with Daniel Conroy-Beam and Laith Al-Shawaf. He received his M.S. with Dr. Glenn Geher at the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2018, where he also worked with Dr. Carol Vazquez. He is primarily interested in the malleability and development of sexual/romantic attraction, and the impact of hormones and environments on mating strategies. He is an associate editor of the Journal of the Evolutionary Studies Consortium. In his spare time, he watches college and professional football, runs, plays guitar, and rides his beloved bike called The HMB Beagle.

jenna lunge

Jenna Lunge is a Ph.D. student who joined the Welling Research Lab in Fall 2016 and completed her M.S. in 2018. Jenna previously attended the University of California, Merced, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in psychology. While at UCM, she was a research assistant at the Consortium for Research on Atypical Development and Learning, where she investigated the evolutionary influences on attention using a change-detection task known as the flicker paradigm. Jenna is interested in how hormones influence behaviors related to mate choice and the behavioral immune system. She is funded by the King-Chavez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship. Otherwise, Jenna enjoys dark wine, darker coffee, gardening, brewing homemade beer, and hanging with her rescue animals.

katherine (kat) sheetz

Kat Sheetz joined the Welling Research Lab in the Fall of 2022 and received her M.S. in Psychology in 2024. She previously earned her B.A. in Psychology (minor in English) from Bowling Green State University in December 2021. Her M.S. thesis investigated perceptions of trustworthiness in online dating profiles. She decided to stay on as a Ph.D. student, starting in 2024. Kat is interested in hormonal contraceptives, mate selection, and dating violence, specifically in online dating. In her free time, you’ll find her watching reality tv shows with a cup of coffee in the morning, tending to her plethora of houseplants, dancing to Harry Styles, and watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe in chronological order.

current honors students

Carlyn Shango

Carlyn Shango is currently a junior at Oakland University, pursuing a degree in Health Sciences with a concentration in Pre-Health Professionals. She joined the lab during the Winter 2025 semester. Her primary interest is exploring the link between hormones and mental health, particularly with respect to the physical and emotional well-being of women. Carlyn's ultimate goal is to attend Physician Assistant school. Outside of academics, she enjoys traveling and spending quality time with family and friends.

current embark students

Hannah Knoll

Hannah completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Biology, Health, and Society at The University of Michigan and is currently a medical student at OUWB School of Medicine. Previously, she was involved in research related to Type 1 Diabetes Management in Adolescents/Young Adults and HPV Vaccine Hesitancy in rural areas of Michigan. She joined the Welling Lab in 2025, where she will be completing her Embark project, which focuses on sexually transmitted infection (STI) disclosure to partners. Hannah loves spending time with her family and friends, trying new restaurants, and traveling.

Silvana Iskandar

Silvana completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Neuroscience at UCLA and is currently a medical student at OUWB School of Medicine. Previously, she conducted a year-long independent study testing the application of Transcutaneous Electrical Stimulation (TcES) on the spinal cord to improve function in nerve palsy patients. She joined the lab in 2023 and her EMBARK project focuses on the relationship between contraceptive use, political affiliation, religious identity, and social dominance orientation. Her hobbies are singing, traveling, and spending quality time with friends and family.

Tannoz Norouzi

Tannoz is presently working on her M.D. degree at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. Previously, she received her Bachelor's Degree in Biological Science at the University of California, Irvine where her research focused on Neurological Injury and Alzheimer's Disease. She joined the Welling Lab in 2023, where she will be completing her longitudinal Embark project. She will focus on the impact of social media on mate retention behaviors, attachment, personality, and intimate partner violence within romantic relationships. Tannoz loves spending her time at the beach, going on new adventures, spending quality time with her puppy, Simba, as well as her circle of friends and family.

Manasa Pavuloori

Manasa Pavuloori joined the Welling Lab in Spring of 2023 and is currently pursuing her M.D. at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. Manasa previously attended Virginia Commonwealth University and earned her Bachelor's degree in Biology with honors and minors in Chemistry and Psychology. She was previously involved in research into aggression and has worked at a local domestic violence shelter as a shelter advocate. Her current Embark project focuses on the fear of being alone and domestic violence. Manasa's hobbies include traveling, cooking, and spending quality time with her friends and family.

Nadia Shebli

Nadia Shebli joined the Welling Lab in Spring of 2024 and is currently pursuing her M.D. at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. She previously attended the University of Michigan and earned her Bachelor’s degrees in Gender Studies and Biomolecular Sciences. Previously, she conducted a two-year ethnography project on cultural traditions and marriage in Arab-Muslim American communities. Her EMBARK project is focused on purity culture and sexual health in Muslim communities. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy books, traveling with her fiancé, and spending time with her friends and family.

Shayzal Siddiqui

Shayzal Siddiqui joined the lab in 2024. She completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Health & Society at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and is currently a medical student at OUWB School of Medicine. Previously, she conducted ethnographic research to explore maternal mortality in rural Pakistan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her EMBARK project focuses on the impact of Amphetamines on conflict resolution, emotion regulation, and relationship and sexual satisfaction in romantic relationships among individuals with ADHD. In her free time, she likes traveling, exploring coffee shops, and spending quality time with friends.

current research assistants

Jake Brown

Jake graduated from MSU in 2024 and is working towards attending graduate school next Fall. His primary interest is in clinical psychology, specifically how mental health is affected by a person's self-image and relationships. In his free time, Jake likes to play guitar and watch football and baseball.

Caroline Hanna

Caroline is currently a senior at Oakland University who is graduating in the Winter of 2025 with the goal of pursuing a masters in Psychology. She started volunteering in the lab in 2024 and is specifically interested in eating disorders and how they affect interpersonal relationships. Personally, she enjoys cooking, tennis, painting, and quality time with loved ones.

Sydney Markel

Sydney joined the lab is 2024, is currently a junior, and is preparing for her senior year. She hopes to move on to graduate school after her Winter 2025 graduation. She is most interested in personality disorders, dementia, and schizophrenia. Outside of school, she is a part time dance teacher. In her free time, she enjoys reading and trying new exercise programs.

Maria McCord

Maria is an undergraduate student gearing up for her junior year at Oakland University. Her passion for psychology ignited during her sophomore year of high school, and this passion continues to grow. She is ecstatic to have the opportunity to work in the lab and is eager to learn from and work alongside Dr. Welling and the team. Maria is driven by a deep desire to understand people better and strives to positively impact the lives of others, always trying to leave people better off than she found them. She is particularly interested in exploring the underlying reasons behind people's actions and the mysteries of intuition, especially concerning mate choice. In her free time, Maria enjoys cycling, delving into a good self development book, perhaps for the 5th time, and spending time with her friends and family.

Lab Alumni

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