Hi there! I am a cognitive scientist studying the playful mind. Play is a universal feature of early childhood, easily recognized yet tricky to define. Why do we play, and what is it good for?
Studying how people engage in a variety of playful behaviors allows us to answer many questions about human cognition, motivation, and development. I’m specifically interested in:
- How people flexibly create, select, and solve new problems;
- When and why we are motivated to do so;
- How these processes change as we develop, learn, and interact with others
I tackle these questions using experimental and computational methods. In the long term, I aim to broadly inform theories of learning, exploration, and discovery, as well as improve children’s educational and life outcomes.
Currently I am a postdoctoral researcher working with Judy Fan (Cognitive Tools Lab) and Hyowon Gweon (Social Learning Lab). I earned my Ph.D. in Cognitive Science at MIT working with Laura Schulz.