Tracy Desjardins

Program affiliation: Clinical Psychology

Supervisor: Dr. Bonnie Leadbeater

Research interests

Broadly, my research interests are in the areas of 1) social relationships during childhood and adolescence, and 2) mental health in children and adolescents. My major focus is on peer victimization and aggression across these developmental periods. My past research has investigated various aspects of adolescents' relationships including relational victimization by peers and emotional support from peers and parents, as well as the mental health risks associated with peer victimization. Other areas of interest include the links between children's social understanding, victimization, and aggressive behaviours; prevention of peer victimization; and measurement of peer victimization in different age groups.

Awards

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS): Doctoral Scholarship
Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR) Research Trainee Award: Junior Graduate Assistantship
President's Research Scholarship, University of Victoria
Exceptional Merit Award, University of Victoria
SSHRC CGS: Master's Scholarship
Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) Certificate of Academic Excellence

Representative publications

Desjardins, T., Yeung, R.S., Sukhawathanakul, P., Leadbeater, B.J., & MacDonald, S.W.S. (under review). Factor structure of the Social Experience Questionnaire across time, grade, and gender among early elementary school children.

Desjardins, T., & Leadbeater, B.J. (in press). Relational victimization and depressive symptoms in adolescence: Moderating effects of mother, father, and peer emotional support. Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

Desjardins, T., & Scoboria, A. (2007). 'You and your best friend Suzy put slime in Ms. Smollett's desk': Producing false memories with self-relevant details. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 14(6), 1090-1095.

Representative conference presentations

Leadbeater, B.J., Sukhawathanakul, P., Desjardins, T., & Yeung, R.S. (2010). Changing the contexts of peer victimization in early elementary school: The WITS program evaluation. Society for Prevention Research annual meeting in Denver, CO, USA.

Desjardins, T., Yeung, R. S., Sukhawathanakul, P., Leadbeater, B., & MacDonald, S. W. S. (2010). The Social Experience Questionnaire revisited: Examining its factor structure and stability with elementary school children. Society for Research on Adolescence, biennial meeting in Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Leadbeater, B. J., Yeung, R. S., & Desjardins, T. (2009). The WITS program evaluation: Mobilizing communities to reduce peer victimization among elementary school children. Society for Research in Child Development, biennial meeting in Denver, CO, USA.

Yeung, R. S., Desjardins, T., Sukhawathanakul, P., & Leadbeater, B. J. (2009). The WITS program: Creating effective responses from families, peers, and schools to reduce victimization. Promoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence (PREVNet) AGM and conference in Toronto, ON, Canada.

Desjardins, T., & Leadbeater, B. J. (2008). The relation between peer victimization and depression in adolescence: Does parental support matter? Jean Piaget Society annual meeting in Québec City, QC, Canada.