Lab members
Lab Director
Sabine Doebel
Sabine leads the Developing Minds Lab in the Department of Psychology at George Mason University. Much of the research in the lab focuses on questions related to the development of ‘executive function’—the capacity and skills involved in exercising control over thoughts and actions in the service of goals. Executive function is essential to adaptive human functioning, and predicts success in a variety of domains in life, including academic, social and behavioral outcomes; however, much remains unknown about how specific experiences shape executive function skills. While there is no question that executive function is important—we use it every day in many ways—there are many questions about how best to measure it, how it is related to skills in specific domains, and whether and how to target it in interventions to improve other aspects of development. The lab aims to address many of these questions and more.
Sabine completed her Ph.D. at the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota and a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Colorado Boulder. She was born in Ohio and grew up in Ontario, Canada. (You will rarely hear her saying “eh?” these days but she is known to say “sorry” frequently!) In addition to conducting research on executive function and related topics, she also enjoys considering how we can teach developmental science more inclusively (for example, better showcasing development in diverse cultures) and how this can lead to more accurate conclusions about development. She teaches courses in child development, executive function, culture and development, and parenting. Sabine engages and trains her students in open science practices.
When not teaching or conducting research, Sabine is learning to play tennis and losing chess games to her 8-year-old son, Vincent, who is growing up much too fast.
View her CV here.
Current Graduate Students
Lütfiye Ulusahin
Lütfiye is a first-year PhD student in the Applied Developmental Psychology program at George Mason University. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Ibn Haldun University in Türkiye and is also looking forward to completing her second major in Sociology at the same university soon. She also worked at the Culture, Society, and Behavior Lab at the University of Oslo, which broadened her perspective on cultural and sociological aspects of child development and well-being. Building on these experiences, her research interests focus on how childhood play and early life experiences are associated with later psychosocial development, executive function, and academic success. She is particularly curious about how such fundamental activities contribute to children’s cognitive functions and overall psychosocial growth. Also, born in Istanbul, she enjoys spending time in the city and loves having conversations about it.
Jennifer Biven
Jennifer is a first-year graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in Applied Developmental Psychology. She graduated from George Mason in 2023 with a B.A. in Psychology, and continued building her experience in the field as a research assistant at the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress (CSTS) in Bethesda, Maryland. At CSTS, Jennifer supported various projects, all with the central goal of advancing military medicine, by contributing to data collection and analysis, grant submissions, and manuscript writing. Her research interests include environmental influences on children’s executive function and theory of mind, and how they, in turn, pose protective and/or risk factors for childhood-onset psychiatric disorders. In her free time, Jennifer loves baking, visiting new coffee shops, and going to farmers markets.
Victoria (Vicki) Rabii
Vicki is a third-year Ph.D. student in the Applied Developmental Psychology program. She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2020 with a B.S. in Psychology and earned her Master’s degree from George Mason University in 2025. Prior to joining George Mason, she completed a Postbac IRTA Fellowship in a clinical neuroimaging lab at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), and subsequently spent a year working as a research assistant under Dr. Brenda Jones Harden at the University of Maryland collecting and disseminating child assessment data for Educare DC's longitudinal program evaluation.
Vicki is dedicated to bridging the gap between research and practice in early childhood care and education contexts. Broadly, her research interests center on the interrelations between early adversity (e.g., poverty), environmental factors (e.g., familial and neighborhood dynamics), and academic development in preschoolers and Head Start/Early Head Start attendees.
Research Assistants
Mehmood Shajih
Mehmood plans to graduate from George Mason University with a Bachelors in Psychology. This is his 2nd year at Mason after transferring a year early from Northern Virginia Community College, leaving him as a Junior. As someone who has been employed at child daycare and education sites since he was 16, he is highly interested in developmental psychology. His focus in research is on Child psychopathology, treatments, and cures for the various psychological turmoil children face. At Mason, Mehmood is also minoring in Political Communication. He is highly interested in politics and government and will one day run to become an elected official who advocates for children's mental health. At the moment, Mehmood has worked as an intern for the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Outreach Department, as a Deputy Campaign Manager for Local Politicians, and he has worked with various local governments. In his spare time, Mehmood loves exploring restaurants with friends, crocheting, knitting, playing tennis, and working out
Monique Le
After Monique received her B.S. in Biology and a concentration in Environmental Science and Conservation Biology, she returned to George Mason University to study Psychology, with plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Applied Developmental Psychology. Through her studies, Monique hopes to also contribute in bridging the gap between research and practice in early childhood development. She is dedicated to the diversity, inclusion, and representation of marginalized communities within academic and research contexts and strives to make information more accessible to the general population. In her spare time, Monique enjoys crocheting, drawing, and vending at markets and conventions. She also loves to cosplay and never missed a theme day in grade school because she needed any reason to dress up!
Minasi Kaluappuwa Hannadige
Minasi is a senior at George Mason University studying Psychology. She is interested in Developmental Psychology and is planning on continuing her studies with a concentration in Developmental Psychology and Educational Psychology. She is captivated by the field of Developmental psychology and is continuing her education within the field. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Applied Developmental Psychology. She enjoys working with children and is interested in understanding how children develop. In her free time, she enjoys reading books related to psychology, watching movies and listening to music.
Graduate Student Alumni
Nicole Stucke-Downes
Nicole Stucke-Downes completed her PhD in the Developing Minds Lab in 2024. Her research focused on executive function development and examining gender differences in persistence in childhood. You can find her on LinkedIn here.
