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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Dr. Madison Aitken presented at CPA in Montreal on sleep problems in youth with mental health conditions. About 2/3 of these youth have problems with multiple aspects of their sleep, and two different patterns emerged that might benefit from tailored treatment approaches. @madisonaitken.bsky.social

Dr. Madison Aitken at a podium in a conference room, with a screen in the background titled "Sleep Problems are Clinically Relevant"

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Marina Fonseca presented at CPA showing that only 13% of youth with a history of depression meet physical activity guidelines. Current depressive episode = especially low moderate-vigorous activity, but light activity was not affected by depressive episode and might be promising for interventions.

Marina standing in front of an academic poster titled "An actigraphy-based exploration of the physical activity patterns of youth with past and current depression"

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Nour Rarrbo presented her thesis results at the Development 2026 conference on emotions youth experience when interacting with their parents. She found that experiencing more positive emotions, but not less negative emotions, was related to better relationship quality.

Nour standing in front of an academic poster titled "Longitudinal Associations Between Adolescents' Emotions During Parent-Adolescent Interactions and Their Well-Being"

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Staci Berman presented her thesis research at CPA showing that youth perceptions of safety in family therapy, a component of therapeutic alliance, predicts better self-harm treatment outcomes. In contrast, she found that stronger parent alliance ratings predicted worse treatment outcomes.

Staci standing in front of an academic poster titled "Youth and Parent Therapeutic Alliance and Self-Harm Outcomes in Family Therapy"

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Congrats to Mohammad Usmani on an excellent Honours thesis poster! He found that physical activity -> more positive affect 1 month later in undergrads at risk for low mood. Doing more of that physical activity with others also -> less depressive symptoms, highlighting possible protective effects.

Mohammad Usmani standing beside a research poster

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Congrats to Nysa Syed on an excellent Honours thesis poster! Nysa found that in undergrads, higher negative emotionality & conscientiousness were related to poorer sleep hygiene. Since conscientiousness = better sleep hygiene in adults, study habits (e.g., working until bedtime) may play a role.

Nysa Syed standing in front of a research poster

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

Congrats to Daniel O'Grady on a successful Honours Thesis poster day! Daniel did a systematic review of adolescent participation in behavioral sleep treatment studies. Recruitment rates vary but are low in many studies, suggesting challenges engaging young people in these interventions.

A young man standing in front of a research poster

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YOOTh Lab @yoothlab.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

Congrats to Liana Coutinho on a successful Honours Thesis poster day! Liana found that, among a variety of sleep features, feeling anxious at bedtime was the only feature that predicted greater readiness to change sleep behaviours in young people.

A young woman standing in front of a research poster titled "Youth Sleep Behaviours and Perceptions of Sleep Treatment"

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