Owerko Centre Catalyst Grants in Neurodevelopment Research

Advancing the study of child and youth flourishing: Research from the All Our Families Study

Principal Investigator: Dr. Zahra Clayborne, PhD, Departments of Community Health Sciences and Pediatrics, Cumming School of Medicine

The study of well-being has received growing interest across the social and health sciences, along with the concept of flourishing. However, despite growing research interest in flourishing, several limitations exist in the current evidence base. Our group will conduct a multi-methods project that seeks to evaluate the research question: How do children and youth interpret and experience flourishing, and what are the psychological, social, behavioural, and environmental factors that influence their current and long-term flourishing? 

A Pilot Study of UPLIFTS

Principal Investigator: Dr. Elizabeth Condliffe, Clinical Associate Professor, Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine 

UPLIFTS - Upright Participation for Learners: Implementation of Flexible use of roboT-assisted walking in Schools

Robot-assisted walking can improve health and participation for children who cannot walk due to conditions like cerebral palsy, Spina Bifida, or Rett Syndrome. However, access is limited due to high costs and the need for adult support. Schools offer a promising setting to expand equitable access. A study was done to identify barriers and facilitators to school-based implementation and the research team have selected strategies to address them. This pilot study will test those strategies to optimize the approach before launching a multisite trial aimed at sustainable, equitable school-based access to robot-assisted walking.

Ecological momentary assessment to measure thought regulation and predict affect in youth with neurodevelopmental conditions

Principal Investigator: Dr. Julia Kam, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts 

The inability to regulate our thoughts is associated with negative impacts on affective well-being. This catalyst project aims to develop an ecological momentary assessment tool to assess regulation of thought content and provide feasibility data to show that it can be used in youth with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We will investigate if dysregulation of thought content is a transdiagnostic process that underlies affective wellbeing in these conditions, and if thought dysregulation can be used to make person-specific predictions about affective well-being using machine learning.