Dr Lara Wood

Contact info

lara.wood@abertay.ac.uk

+44 (0)1382 30 8583

Biography

I’m a Reader in Psychology, specialising in Socio-Cognitive development. I am interested in how people (and other animals) perceive, influence, and are influenced by their social worlds. I take both an theoretical and applied approach and work across discplines and with multiple research methods.

Before joining the University of Abertay in 2016, I held a three-year Senior Research Fellowship at the University of St Andrews. I completed my undergraduate Psychology degree at the University of Sussex and my masters and PhD at Durham University which focused on social learning mechanisms and strategies in children and chimpanzees.

Child and Youth Lab: https://www.abertay.ac.uk/business/facilities-and-services/child-and-youth-lab/
Gender Stereotypes Lab: https://www.genderstereotypeslab.co.uk/

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Teaching
Research

I am the Programme Lead for Psychology with Development and Education

I teach on the following modules:

PSY215 Tomorrow's Child (module lead)

PSY104: Comparative Psychology

PSY410: Psychology Honours Project

PSY101: Introductory Psychology

PSY420: Workbased Learning (supervisor)

I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Interests

My current research areas include (1) children's social learning across cultures and contexts, (2) children and young people's understanding of gender stereotypes and the impact of gender stereotyping on their choices, and (3) children's understanding and learning of cybersecurity skills.

You can visit the below to find our more information-

https://www.genderstereotypeslab.co.uk/

child-and-youth-lab

I am a co-leader on the ESRC project, Age-based imitation bias throughout development, during daily interactions, and across cultures

I peer review for Child Development, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Science, and Comparative Psychology among others. I am a member of the editorial team for Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.

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More Information

Funding

2023

ESRC £974,000 The development of age-based imitation biases throughout childhood, daily interactions, and cultures

Templeton World Charity Foundation £209,000 Communicating ‘Truth:’ Consumption and transmission of polarized information amongst young people in a divided society

2022

Abertay Studentship £70,00 Investigating the influence of gender stereotypes and social learning on young people’s subject and career choices

2021

Scottish Funding Council £11,876 Research & Knowledge Exchange

Abertay Studentship £67,00 How do we best teach our children to be cybersecure?

Carnegie £3,658 Gender-based judgement of scientific credibility

2018

Abertay Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund: "Who's holding the baby/ An exploration of support for students who (or whose partner) are pregnant or on maternity"

Esteem

I am an invited panel member of the John Templeton Foundation funded project, Concepts in Dynamic Assemblages: Cultural Evolution and the Human Way of Being

I am a member of the editorial team for Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.

I peer review for Child Development, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Science, and Comparative Psychology among others.

Meet the rest of the team

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Professor Sheila Cunningham

Department of Sociological and Psychological Sciences | Professor of Social Cognition

s.cunningham@abertay.ac.uk
+44 (0)1382 30 8592

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Dr Janet McLean

Department of Sociological and Psychological Sciences | Reader in Learning Science

j.mclean@abertay.ac.uk
+44 (0)1382 30 8282

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