Our Team
Lab Director - Angela Alberga, PhD
Born and raised in Montreal, Dr. Alberga completed her BSc (Major Exercise Science, Minor Psychology) at Concordia University. She then completed her MSc and PhD in the School of Human Kinetics, specializing in Exercise Physiology at the University of Ottawa. Her MSc and PhD research focused on improving the cardiometabolic health of children and adolescents living with obesity through exercise. It is through these experiences that she learned how prevalent and harmful weight-based stigma is and has since been devoted to research, teaching and knowledge translation efforts to reduce weight bias, stigma and discrimination in society.
Dr. Alberga pursued two Postdoctoral Fellowships with trifaculty supervision (in Education, Medicine and Psychology) at the University of Calgary on the psychosocial aspects of weight-related issues and their implications for public health. Her research training on the physical, mental and social aspects of weight-related issues fuelled her passion to lead an interdisciplinary health research program at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. She is currently an Associate Professor and Tier 2 University Research Chair in the Department of Health, Kinesiology and Applied Physiology at Concordia University.
Alongside her academic training in health promotion and disease prevention, she has over 15 years of experience working with children, youth and adults as a camp counselor, educator, mentor, coach, instructor, personal trainer and clinical exercise physiologist in academic and community settings across Canada.
Staff
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Lab Coordinator
Thesis/ Research Interest(s):Canadian Health Care Providers’ Attitudes and Practices Towards Pharmacotherapy and Bariatric Surgery in Youth
Other interests include Physical activity in children and youth, mhealth apps in youth, weight stigma in the fitness industry and pediatric weight management interventions.
Publication: Submitted - In progress
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Research Assistant
Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Weight-related commentary, body dissatisfaction and disordered eating attitudes and behaviors among elite figure skaters
Publication: In progress & paper presentation at ICED Conference 2024
Current position: Master's student at National University (sport psychology)
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Bariatric surgery, pediatrics, art-informed research methods, qualitative research, patient experience, quality improvement
Recent Publication(s): Farnesi, B. C., Kaffash, K., Cohen, T. R., & Alberga, A. S. (2023). A qualitative exploration on the needs of health care providers working with adolescents who are undergoing bariatric surgery. Obesity Pillars, 6, 100067.
Wang, Y. N., Heidl, A. J., Angeles, P. M., Farnesi, B. C., Alberga, A. S., & Cohen, T. R. (2023). Assessment of electronic patient education materials for adolescent bariatric surgery candidates: An environment scan. PEC Innovation, 100143.
Farnesi, B. C., Perez, A., Holt, N. L., Morrison, K. M., Gokiert, R., Legault, L., ... & Ball, G. D. (2019). Continued attendance for paediatric weight management: a multicentre, qualitative study of parents' reasons and facilitators. Clinical obesity, 9(3), e12304.
Current position: Research Liaison for the Centre of Excellence in Adolescent Severe Obesity at the Montreal Children's Hospital
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Research Coordinator
Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Weight bias internalization, associations with health behaviours, health behaviours and mental health during pregnancy, population and public health
Publication: Weight Bias Internalization and Beliefs about the Causes of Obesity Among the Canadian Public, published in BMC Public Health
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Research Assistant
Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Examining adverse events in behavioural, pharmacological, and surgical pediatric obesity interventions.
Publication: In progress
Current position: Master’s student at University of Ottawa (Counselling Psychology)
Postdoctoral Fellows
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Weight bias and on the impact of weight stigmatization on body image and health behaviors, the interconnection between eating, weight, and personal relationship issues.
Recent publication: Weight bias among Canadians: Associations with sociodemographics, BMI and body image constructs https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117061
Current position: Adjunct professor at the University of Laval and a registered clinical psychologist at the Centre d’expertise poids, image et alimentation at Université Laval (Québec)
Active from October 2022 to March 2024
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Unintended psychosocial consequences are defined and measured in interventions for pediatric obesity
Recent publication: Proof-of-concept testing of a mobile application-delivered mindfulness exercise for emotional eaters: RAIN delivered as a step-by-step image sequence.
Carrière, K., Siemers, N. & Knäuper, B. A Scoping Review of Mindful Eating Interventions for Obesity Management. Mindfulness 13, 1387–1402 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-022-01883-x
Current position: Clinical psychologist at the MUHC
Active from July 2022 to June 2024
Doctoral Students
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): The psychological and social outcomes/consequences of obesity interventions and internalized weight bias.
Publication: In progress (related publication: Alberga AS, Sacco S, Booij L. Overlooked Outcomes in Pediatric Obesity Management—Unintended Consequences. JAMA Pediatr. Published online August 07, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.2190)
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Automatic expression recognition of hesitance and ambivalence in behavioural change interventions. Behaviour change. Qualitative research methods.
Publication: In progress
Masters Students
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Thesis/ Research Interest(s): Demographic and psychosocial profiles in adolescents who undergo bariatric surgery
Undergraduate Students
Adelaide Waters
Maria Magro
Emily Sofin
Giulia Hart-Lewis
Wendy Luo
Mustafa Kawish
Saruul Bazarsuren
Emma Carroll
Alumni Graduates
Matthew Levy
MSc Student 2018-2020
Field: Health & Exercise Science
Thesis: The Relationship between Weight Bias Internalization and Healthy and Unhealthy Weight Control Behaviours.
Co-Supervisor: Dr. Lisa Kakinami
Publications: The relationship between weight bias internalization and healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviours & Weight bias internalization: Relationships with mental health, physical activity and sedentary behaviour.
Current position: Research assistant
Next steps: Medicine, Technion American Medical School in Haifa, Israel.
Kimiya Kaffash
Bsc Honours Exercise Science 2019-2020
Thesis: What Are the Needs of Health Care Providers Working With Adolescents Who Are Undergoing Bariatric Surgery.
Co-Supervisor: Dr. Tamara Cohen
Current position: McGill Medicine starting Fall 2020
Vida Forouhar
Independent Study Student Winter 2020
MILOH Lab Volunteer 2019-2020
Current position: MSc Health & Exercise Science, Concordia University, starting Fall 2020
Tiffany Samaan
Research Assistant Summer 2019
Complete and submit the scoping review entitled Predictors of weight bias in health science students and fitness professionals. Organize all documents and surveys needed for the study conducted during September, December and April months.
Current position: BSc in Pharmacy, Dalhousie University
Alex Ngyuen
Independent Study Student 2019
Independent study course: EXCI 698 Selected Topics in Exercise Science Winter 2019.
Current position: Medical Student, McGill University. MSc Student, Concordia University
Iyoma Edache
Msc Student 2017-2019
Health & Exercise Science
Research Assistant Summer 2017, 2017-2019
Thesis title: Weight bias and support of public health policies.
Publications: Weight bias and health care utilization: a scoping review and working paper in press at Canadian Journal of Public Health.
Current position: PhD in Population and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia starting Fall 2019
Erica Szwimer
Msc Student 2017-2019
Health & Exercise Science
Research Assistant Summer 2017, 2017-2019
Thesis: The Association Between Weight-Based Teasing from Peers and Family in Childhood and Depressive Symptoms in Childhood and Adulthood: A Systematic Review.
Current position: Teacher Candidate in the Master’s of Teaching program at the University of Toronto
Silvia Michelle Ruiz Lorejo
Summer Research Internship 2018
Project: Social media: What are the effects on the health of its users?
Current position: Talent Acquisition Specialist, studying social psychology
Megan Lamb
PhD Internship Student 2018
Practicum in Psychology January- April 2018 (Carleton University & Concordia University).
Internship research project: weight bias, peer teasing, physical activity and sedentary behaviour.
Current position: PhD Carleton University
Lara Zaroubi
Independent Study Student 2017-2018
Course: EXCI 499 Advanced Topics in Exercise Science Fall/Winter 2017-2018.
Current position: Customer Relations Manager at Hypertec
Gabriel Kakon
MSc Student 2017-2018
Thesis: Edmonton Obesity Staging System for Pediatrics, Quality of Life, and Fitness in Adolescents with Obesity.
Publication: Edmonton Obesity Staging System for Pediatrics, Quality of Life, and Fitness in Adolescents with Obesity
Current position: McGill Dentistry starting Fall 2018