Dr. Leslie Roos
Dr. Leslie E. Roos is an Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba, with appointments in Psychology and Pediatrics. She aims to prevent the intergenerational transmission of stress-linked health inequities by developing scalable programs that promote parent mental health and family relationships. In her basic science research, Dr. Roos takes a multi-modal approach across neurobiology, cognitive function, and parent-child observation methods to identify opportunities to improve program efficacy. Dr. Roos also consults on program evaluation with local agencies and international teams to advance community-sourced solutions for stress-exposed families, starting in the prenatal period.
Current REB approved research:The Building Regulation in Dual Generations program (BRIDGE) : The BRIDGE program is designed to promote intergenerational self-regulation, the effortful control of emotions and behaviour. BRIDGE brings together best-practice therapeutic approaches for building skills in emotional understanding, mindfulness, distress tolerance, and communication for mothers and young children.
Parenting During the Pandemic: Families are facing unprecedented challenges related to coping with a pandemic outbreak. The Parenting During the Pandemic Study aims to develop an understanding of the impact that the pandemic is having on parent’s reported stress, mental health, and support needs with the ultimate goal of informing programming and policies to better meet family needs.
Indigenous Child Wellness Project: In collaboration with the Indigenous Advisory Committee of The Until the Last Child Foundation, Indigenous student mentees are undertaking a project with the goal of developing a measure to assess the wellness of Indigenous children and families. We are ensuring that this work is done in a way that respects cultural protocols by consulting with knowledgeable people in the community, involving Elders, and inviting families to contribute.