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Developmental Disabilities and Mental Health Lab Faculty of Health
Home » Nisha Vashi

Nisha Vashi

Nisha Vashi

Education

  • Doctor of Philosophy, York University (in progress)
  • Master of Arts, York University
  • Master of Science, University of Calgary
  • Bachelor of Science, University of Calgary

Research Interests

My research interests include investigating caregiver, child, and family wellbeing in families of autistic children and youth. My master’s thesis investigated the coherence of parental representations in families of autistic youth. I am also interested in investigating how community-based programs for autistic youth can bolster treatment success to ultimately improve mental health outcomes. For my dissertation research, I will be investigating conceptualizations and predictors of flourishing in families of autistic youth.

Albaum, C., Chan, V., Sellitto, T., Vashi, N., Hastings, R. P., Weiss J. A. (2021). Redressing the balance: A systematic review of positive psychology in the intellectual disability literature. International Review of Research in Developmental Disabilities, 60, 1-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.irrdd.2021.08.003

Jarman, M., Vashi, N., Angus, A., Bell, R., & Giesbrecht, G. (2020). Development of a diet quality index to assess adherence to Canadian dietary recommendations in 3-year-old children. Public Health Nutrition, 23(3), 385-393. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980019002039

Vashi, N., Lee, V., Sellitto, T., Roudbarani, F. H., Pouyandeh, A., Ameis, S., Elkader, A., Gray, K. M., Kerns, C., Lake, J., Legree, M., Thomson, K., & Weiss, J. A. (2022, August 27-31). Associations Between Parent and Child Characteristics and Acceptability of a Community-Based Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Program for Autistic Children [Poster presentation]. Developmental Origins of Health and Disease World Congress 2022, Vancouver, Canada.

Lee, V., Vashi, N., Sellitto, T., Roudbarani, F., Modica, P. T., Pouyandeh, A., Ibrahim, A., Ameis, S., Elkader, A., Gray, K., Kerns, C., Lake, J., Legree, M., Thomson, K., & Weiss, J. A. (2022, August 27-31). Evaluation of the Community-Based Implementation of the Secret Agent Society: Small Group Program for Autistic Children During the Pandemic [Oral presentation]. Developmental Origins of Health and Disease World Congress 2022, Vancouver, Canada.

Vashi, N., Lee, V., Sellitto, T., Roudbarani, F. H., Pouyandeh, A., Ameis, S., Elkader, A., Gray, K. M., Kerns, C., Lake, J., Legree, M., Thomson, K., & Weiss, J. A. (2022, May 11-14). Exploring the acceptability of the Secret Agent Society program for autistic children: A mixed-methods approach [Poster presentation]. International Society for Autism Research Hybrid Conference, Austin, Texas, United States.

Sellitto, T., Lee, V., Vashi, N., Roudbarani, F. H., Pouyandeh, A., & Weiss, J. A. (2022, May 11-14). Thriving in autistic children seeking socioemotional supports in a virtual group-based cognitive behavioural therapy program [Poster presentation]. International Society for Autism Research Hybrid Conference, Austin, Texas, United States.

Lee, V., Vashi, N., Sellitto, T., Roudbarani, F. H., Pouyandeh, A., & Weiss, J. A. (2021, May 20). Evaluation of the Secret Agent Society Small Group Program for Autistic Children [Oral presentation]. Child Health Symposium 2021, Western University.

Vashi, N., Bohr, Y. M., & Weiss, J. A. (2021, May 5-8). Associations between transdiagnostic symptoms and parent-child relationship quality in treatment-seeking families of children with autism [Poster presentation]. International Society for Autism Research (INSAR) Annual Meeting, Boston, USA. 

Vashi, N., Bohr, Y.M., & Weiss, J.A. (2021, April 22). Associations between transdiagnostic symptoms and parent-child relationship quality in families of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities [Oral presentation]. Research Special Interest Group (RSIG) 29th Annual Research Day.

Vashi, N., Lee, V., Sellitto, T., Roudbarani, F.H., Pouyandeh, A., & Weiss, J.A. (2021, April 5-8). Therapist attitudes towards the implementation of a manualized socioemotional intervention for autistic children in community-based agencies [Poster presentation]. The 54th Annual Gatlinburg Conference on Research and Theory in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. 

Vashi, N.,Hart, C. M., Matchullis, R. L., McMorris, C. A., Pexman, P. M., & Curtin, S. (2020, February 18-21).Curriculum-based assessment for children with diverse developmental profiles [Poster presentation]. National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) Annual Convention, Baltimore, USA.

Vashi, N., Morin-Lessard, E., Hentges, R. F., Graham, S. A., McDonald, S. W., Tough, S. C., & McMorris, C. A. (2019, October 17-19). The mediating effect of vocabulary on the association between early motor abilities and later communication [Poster presentation]. Cognitive Development Society (CDS) Conference, Louisville, USA.

Jarman, M., Vashi, N., Angus, A., Bell, R. C., & Giesbrecht, G. F. (2018, October 24). Development of a diet quality index to assess adherence to Canadian dietary recommendations in 3-year-old children [Poster presentation]. Women and Children’s Health Research Institute (WCHRI) Research Day, Edmonton, AB.

Funding

  • 2022 – 2026 Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Doctoral Fellowship
  • 2022 – 2023 Ontario Graduate Scholarship (Declined)
  • 2021 – 2022 Quebec Autism Research Training (QART) Program Fellowship
  • 2020 – 2021 Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-M), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) (Declined)
  • 2019 – 2020 Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship (AGES) – Master’s Award
  • 2018 – 2019 Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship – Master’s Award

Contact

Email: nbvashi@yorku.ca

Twitter: @nishavashi1