Effie Pereira

Effie Pereira is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Queen’s University. Her research focuses on attention dynamics across social interactions, internal thoughts, and digital environments, employing behavioral experiments, psychophysiological methods, and computational models. She holds a B.A.H. (2008), M.Sc. (2014) from Queen’s University, and a Ph.D. (2020) from McGill University.

Education:

• B.A.H., Queen’s University, 2008
• M.Sc., Queen's University, 2014
• Ph.D., McGill University, 2020

Research Interests:

• Dynamic fluctuations in attentional engagement
• Social reward’s influence on attentional biasing
• Cognitive mechanisms underlying mind wandering
• Impact of digital environments on off-task behaviors
• Integration of eye-tracking, EEG, and fMRI methodologies
• Computational modeling of attentional processes

Recent Work Trends: Her articles (2010–2024) explore attention dynamics through interdisciplinary approaches, emphasizing contextual influences on attention allocation and the methodological challenges of studying modern digital behaviors. Key contributions include challenging assumptions about face-based attentional prioritization and advancing stimulated recall techniques for capturing real-time attention shifts.

Grants & Advising: While specific grants aren’t detailed, her research program reflects sustained funding for attention-related studies. No formal advisee list is provided.

Labs/Teams: Collaborates within Queen’s Cognitive Neuroscience Program and interdisciplinary digital behavior research groups.