top of page
Our Lab
Dr Mele Taumoepeau
Lab Director, Associate Professor
Of Tongan and Scottish whakapapa, Mele's research interests are informed by her bi-cultural upbringing. Her primary research focus is the impact cultural environments have on young children's socio-emotional development, with a particular focus on mental-state talk. Mele has conducted several small scale longitudinal studies with young children and their families. She has a strong commitment to Pasifika excellence in academia.
Current Members
Malia 'Alisi Tatafu Vea
PhD Student
Born and raised in Tonga, Malia 'Alisi completed her undergraduate study in Tonga. She was awarded an NZAID scholarship to study at Te Herenga Waka in 2008, where she completed her BSc (Honours) and a Master's of Science in Cross-cultural Psychology in 2013. After working for several years as a psychologist in Tonga, 'Alisi completed her clinical psychology training in Australia. Now back at Te Herenga Waka, 'Alisi's doctoral research is on the parental socialisation of Tongan children. She hopes that the outcomes of her studies will be a step
towards understanding the socialisation of Tongans throughout the early developmental period.
Apoorva Sriram
PhD Student
Apoorva completed her undergraduate and master's degrees in psychology in India. After gaining experience as a Cognitive Trainer and Behaviour Therapist for neurodiverse children in India, she came to New Zealand to pursure her PhD. Apoorva's doctoral research seeks to explore interactions between autistic children and their parents, specifically to understand their influence on Theory of Mind (ToM) development and social understanding among autistic children. She aims to explore the benefits of parent-child dyadic interventions in facilitating mental state understanding among autistic children in India.
Michaela Dresel
PhD Student
Michaela is a PhD student interested in how babies and toddlers think about the goals and preferences of other people, as well as how they learn that these might differ from their own. In her spare time, she enjoys cross-stitching and working towards a goal of eating as many pasta shapes as possible.
Hsiu Ping Tan
Master's Student
Octavia Morrison-Deaker
Master's Student
Octavia is studying her Master's alongside the Clinical Psychology programme here at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington. Coming from a multicultural background (Kāi Tahu, Indonesia) and raised in Bali, Indonesia, she is passionate about how cultures shape us and play a role in our identity, cognitive processes, and behaviour. Her research looks at how independent and interdependent self-construals in parents influence their interaction with children.
Eddy Grant
Research Assistant
Eddy completed their Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Psychology at the University of Otago in 2021. They are now studying a Master's thesis with Professor Marc Wilson, focusing on transgender identity development in non-binary people. Eddy's research assistant work is primarily on the Marsden Minds and Rules project.
Meilani Payne
Lab Volunteer
Meilani is studying towards a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Education and Psychology, with a minor in Pacific Studies. She is interested in cross-cultural research in the Pacific, particularly Pacific concepts of wellbeing and how they differ between Pacific countries.
Past Members
Sarah Burkitt
Honours Student
Sarah is currently under Mele's supervision for her Honours research project after recently beginning her Bachelor of Science (Hons) Degree in Psychology. The focus of Sarah's project is whether parent-child mind-mindfulness description increases a child's future theory of mind development. Her data are from both New Zealand and Malaysian cultural contexts.
bottom of page