My research focuses on experiences of solitude across the lifespan and across cultures. In particular, I am interested in the development and implications of shyness, social withdrawal, and preference for solitude. My most recent research projects have focused on: (1) the costs and benefits of solitude in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood; (2) the challenges faced by shy and anxious children at school; and (3) the meaning and implications of social withdrawal in different cultures.
PhD Student, Psychology (Vanier Scholar)
Previous Degrees:
- Master of Science, Applied Science, Saint Mary’s University
- Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, Saint Mary’s University
Research Interests:
I am a fourth-year PhD student in Developmental Psychology, working under the supervision of Dr. Robert Coplan. My research currently focuses on experiences of solitude during adolescence and emerging adulthood. I am specifically interested in looking beyond time alone to consider how the “what” (i.e., solitary activities), “why” (i.e., internal motivations), and “where” (i.e., environmental context) of solitude interact to predict well-being. I am also enthusiastic about advanced statistical techniques and hope to graduate with a concentration in Quantitative Methodology.
As a secondary line of research, I use participatory action, mixed (qualitative/quantitative) research methods to examine how community-based interventions can be leveraged to enhance ecological resilience in violence-affected youth.
Undergraduate Honours Thesis Title: Social withdrawal and academic achievement in emerging adulthood
Master of Science Thesis Title: Service quality, resilience, and social-emotional competence in vulnerable youth: What’s LOVE got to do with it?
Doctoral Dissertation Title: The “where” of solitude: A mixed-methods approach to examining the benefits of being alone versus with others in nature
Selected Publications:
McVarnock, A., Coplan, R. J., White, H., & Bowker, J. C. (2023). Looking beyond time alone: An examination of solitary activities in emerging adulthood. Journal of Personality, 00, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12905
McVarnock, A., Cheng, T., Polakova, L., & Coplan, R. J. (2023). Are you alone? Measuring solitude in childhood, adolescence, and emerging adulthood. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1179677. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1179677
Zhu, J., McVarnock, A., Li, Y., Polakova, L., Xiang, S., Li, Y., & Coplan, R. J. (2023). Shyness and socio-emotional adjustment among young Chinese children: The moderating role of screen time. Behavioral Sciences, 13, 763. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13090763
Bekkhus, M., McVarnock, A., Coplan, R. J., Ulset, V. V., & Kraft, B. (2022). Developmental changes in the structure of shyness and internalizing symptoms from early to middle childhood. Child Development, 94(4), 1078-1086. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13906
Closson, L. M., & McVarnock, A. M., & Cook, L. E. (2022). Is there an upside to social withdrawal? Considering well-being among socially withdrawn emerging adults. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 17, 3131-3149. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-022-10056-w
Coplan, R. J., & McVarnock, A., Hipson, W. E., & Bowker, J, C. (2022). Alone with my phone? Examining beliefs about solitude and technology use in adolescence. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 00(0), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1177/01650254221113460
McVarnock, A., & Closson, L. M. (2022). Subtypes of social withdrawal and academic adjustment in emerging adulthood. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 40(2), 352-367. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12411
Closson, L. M., McVarnock, A., & Sanford, K. (2019). Social withdrawal and social surrogacy in emerging adulthood. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48, 717-730. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0932-4
MA Student, Psychology
Office: SSRB 210F
Previous Degrees:
- Master of Arts Psychology, Carleton University: Data Science Specialization
- Bachelor of Arts Honours Psychology, Carleton University: concentration in Social and Personality Psychology and minor in Neuroscience and Mental Health
Research Interests:
I am a first-year PhD student working with Dr. Robert Coplan. My research interests include examining the social and personality aspects that influence one’s experience of solitude. I am involved in a variety of projects with varying methodologies. Presently, I am researching the paradox of having a social identity as someone who enjoys solitude, and the various impacts of this social identity has on experience of solitude. I am also interested in examining the use of chatbots and AI to meet socialization needs. Finally, I am interested in methodology and statistics and I’m pursuing a concentration in quantitative methodology.
Selected Publications:
- McVarnock, A., Cheng, T., Stone, A., & DeGroot, M. (In press). The Development of Social Withdrawal Research in Childhood and Adolescence Over 70 Years: A Systematic Scoping Review. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly.
- Brunetti, M., Sette, S., Cheng, T., Laghi, F., Longobardi, E., Pastorelli, C., Zuffianò, A., & Coplan, R. J (2024). Solitary groups: A latent profile analysis of motivations for social withdrawal and experiences of solitude in late childhood and early adolescence. Social Development, e12742.https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12742.
- Teodorescu, D., Cheng, T., Fyshe, A., & Mohammad, S. (2023). Language and Mental Health: Measures of Emotion Dynamics from Text as Linguistic Biosocial Markers. In Proceedings of the 2023 Conference on Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing (pp. 3117–3133). Association for Computational Linguistics. https://doi.org/10.18653/v1/2023.emnlp-main.188
- McVarnock, A., Cheng, T., Polakova, L., & Coplan, R. J. (2023) Are you Alone? Measuring Solitude in Childhood, Adolescence, and Emerging Adulthood. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1179677
- Tabri, N., Cheng, T., Palmer, L., Kim, H. S., Clark, L., & Wohl M. J. A. (Accepted). Testing the bifactor model of the Financially Focused Self-concept Scale. Journal of Gambling Issues
- Zhu, J., Coplan, R.J., Jiang, Y., Cheng, T., Xie, M., Xiang, S., & Li, Y. Social Avoidance and Socio-Emotional Functioning among Young Chinese Children: The Moderating Role of Maternal Depressive Symptoms. Under review at Journal of Child and Family Studies