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Monika A Waszczuk, PhD
Dr. Monika Waszczuk is an Associate Professor of Psychology. She completed her undergraduate training at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK. Afterwards, Dr. Waszczuk received her MSc and PhD in Behavioral Genetics from the Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry (SGDP) Centre at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), King’s College London, UK. Following her graduate training, Dr. Waszczuk joined the Department of Psychiatry at Stony Brook University in New York, where she completed her postdoctoral training and conducted research as an Assistant Professor. Many of her projects at Stony Brook University have been in collaboration with the World Trade Center Health and Wellness Program. Dr. Waszczuk is an executive board member of the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) Consortium and serves as a Chair of the HiTOP Genetic Workgroup. Dr. Waszczuk joined the faculty of RFUMS in 2020.
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Research Interests
The overarching goal of Dr. Waszczuk’s research program is to explicate the role of genetic vulnerability in the etiology and co-occurrence of physical and mental health conditions. Research topic include:
- Application of polygenic risk scores to predict severity and long-term course of PTSD, inflammation, and other health outcomes in responders to the 9/11 disaster.
- Interplay between personality traits, health-related behaviors, and trauma/stress exposure in mental and physical health.
- Etiology of psychiatric conditions, in particular emotional disorders (e.g. depression, anxiety, PTSD), in developmental and adult populations.
- Psychiatric comorbidity, classification, and the HiTOP model, with a focus on transdiagnostic approaches.
Connect with Dr. Waszczuk on Twitter:
Are You a Prospective Graduate Student?
Dr. Waszczuk will be accepting students for the 2025/2026 academic year.
Current Students
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Amanda Masserlie, MS Amanda is a sixth-year student in the Clinical Psychology PhD Program. She graduated from RFUMS with an MS in Clinical Counseling in 2019. Her primary research interests focus on the effects of anxiety on cognitive functioning across the adult lifespan. Her clinical interest is in adult neuropsychology, specifically transplant neuropsychology, neuro-oncology, pre-surgical evaluations, and cognitive function in complex medical cases. In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, hiking, and traveling. Publications: Messerlie, A.E., Guidotti Breting, L.M., Calamari, J.E., Sweet, J.J., Geary, E.K., …, Waszczuk, M. A. (in press). Task-based Attentional Control: The role of Anxiety and Age. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology. |
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Krista Ekberg, MS Krista is a fourth-year student in the Clinical Psychology PhD Program. Prior to entering the RFUMS doctoral program, she worked as a research assistant at DePaul University, assisting with an NIH-funded project investigating the prevalence of pediatric myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Broadly, Krista is interested in examining comorbid psychological and physical health outcomes in pediatric populations, with a specific focus on investigating how genetic vulnerabilities contribute as underlying factors. She is currently completing clinical training at Shriners Children's Chicago. In her free time, she enjoys attending concerts and thrifting. Publications: Ekberg, K. M., Michelini, G., Schneider, K. L., Docherty, A. R., Shabalin, A. A., Perlman, G., ... & Waszczuk, M. A. (2024). Associations between polygenic risk scores for cardiometabolic phenotypes and adolescent depression and body dissatisfaction. Pediatric Research, 1-8. Ekberg, K.M., Torres, C. & Jason, L.A. (2021) Parent-child discrepancies in health-related quality of life of children and adolescents with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. Qual Life Res. |
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Christopher Khudari, MA Christopher is a second-year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program. Before joining ÎÞÂëȺ½», he received his BA in Psychology from the University at Buffalo and his MA in Psychology from Stony Brook University. Following his Masters degree, he worked as a project coordinator at Stony Brook Medicine on an artificial intelligence study examining PTSD and health in World Trade Center Responders. He also served as a clinical interviewer for a Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) project. He completed the All of Us Research Scholar Program, and is currently completing his clinical placement practicum at the James Lovell VA. He is broadly interested in how genetic risk factors and personality traits influence psychopathology and health outcomes. Publications: Khudari, C., Oltmanns, J. R., Ruggero, C., Luft, B. J., & Kotov, R. (2024). Personality change across four years in World Trade Center responders. European Journal of Personality. |
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Youjin Kim Youjin is a second year student in the Psychology Clinical Counseling MS program. She graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in Psychological Sciences in 2022. Youjin is currently completing her clinical internship at the Josselyn Center, a community mental health center that provides comprehensive therapeutic services and community resources for all. Broadly speaking, her research interests consist of the biopsychosocial model of trauma and its effects on the development of personality and psychopathology. In her free time, Youjin enjoys spending time with friends, listening to music, and playing pickleball.
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Katarzyna Klimek Kasia is a first year student in the Psychology Clinical Counseling MS program. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology in 2022. She currently works as a research assistant for the Healthy Brains and Child Development Study at Northwestern University. Broadly, her research interests include pediatric neuropsychological assessments in diverse populations, and how environmental, social, and biological factors interact with genetic factors to influence development and psychopathology. In her free time, Kasia enjoys Polish folk dancing, reading, and going to the movie theater! |
Lab Alumni
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Elaine Schultz, PhD |
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Palak Singh, PhD |
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Anakaren Elizondo, MS Anakaren is currently completing PhD program in Clinical Child Psychology at The University of Hartford. She graduated from the Clinical Counseling MS program at RFUMS in 2023. |
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Jessica Krawiec, MS Jessica is currently pursuing her clinical career. She graduated from the Clinical Counseling MS program at RFUMS in 2024. |
Recent Publications (selected)
Please see for a complete list of her current/previous research funding and peer-reviewed publications.
Messerlie, A.E., Guidotti Breting, L.M., Calamari, J.E., Sweet, J.J., Geary, E.K., …, Waszczuk, M. A. (in press). Task-based Attentional Control: The role of Anxiety and Age. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology.
Ekberg, K., Michelini, G., Schneider, K. L., Docherty, A. R., Shabalin, … , Waszczuk, M. A. (2024). Weighing the Genetic Risk: Associations Between Polygenic Risk Scores for Cardiometabolic Phenotypes and Adolescent Depression and Body Dissatisfaction. Pediatric Research.
Nievergelt, C.M., Maihofer, A.X., Atkinson, E.G., Chen, C.Y., Choi, K.W. … Waszczuk, M.A… Koenen, K.C. (2024). Discovery of 95 PTSD loci provides insight into genetic architecture and neurobiology of trauma and stress-related disorders. Nature Genetics.
Hoy, N., Lynch, S., Waszczuk, M. A., Reppermund, S., & Mewton, L. (2023). Transdiagnostic biomarkers of mental illness across the lifespan: a systematic review examining the genetic and neural correlates of latent transdiagnostic dimensions of psychopathology in the general population. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews.
Harrison, T.J., Docherty, A., Finsaas, M., Kotov, R., Shabalin, A., Waszczuk, M. A., … Klein, D.N. (2023) Exploring the Relationship Between Genetic Risk for Depression and Youth Episodic Stress Exposure. Journal of Affective Disorders. 340, 649-657
Waszczuk, M. A.*, Jonas, K. G.*, Bornovalova, M., Breen, G., Bulik, C., … Waldman, I. (2023). Dimensional and Transdiagnostic Approaches in Psychiatric Genome-wide Association Studies. Molecular Psychiatry, 28 (12), 4943-4953.
Rodriguez-Seijas, C., Li, J. J., Balling, C., Brandes, C., Bernat, E., Boness, C., … Waszczuk, M. A., Eaton, N. R. (2023). Diversity and the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP). Nature Reviews Psychology, 2 (8), 483-495.
Eaton, N. R., Bringmann, L. F., Elmer, T., Fried, E. I., Forbes, M. K. … Waszczuk, M. A. (2023). A Review of Approaches and Models in Psychopathology Classification Research. Nature Reviews Psychology, 2 (10), 622-636.
Waszczuk, M. A., Morozova, O., Lhuillier, E., Docherty, A. R. Shabalin, A. A., … Luft, B. J. (2023). Polygenic Risk Scores for Asthma and Allergic Disease Associate with COVID-19 Severity in 9/11 Responders. Plos One 18 (3) e0282271.
Waszczuk, M. A., Kuan, P. F., Yang, X., Miao, J., Kotov, R., Luft, B. J. (2023). Discovery and Replication of Blood-Based Proteomic Signature of PTSD in 9/11 Responders. Translational Psychiatry 13 (8).