Department of Psychology

Biography:

Keywords: psychopathology; cognitive processes; cognitive mechanisms; worry; anxiety

I received my PhD from Concordia University in 2007. During the final year of my doctoral training, I completed a clinical internship at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto. Following completion of the PhD, I joined Ryerson University as a postdoctoral fellow. I began my tenure-track faculty position at Ryerson in 2008 and have been a registered psychologist in Ontario since 2010.

My research interests are in the area of cognition and psychopathology with a specific focus on the ways in which concepts and methods from cognitive psychology can be used to inform and refine cognitive-behavioural theories and treatments for anxiety disorders. I am interested in various facets of cognition: cognitive structures (e.g., the organization and representation in memory of threat), cognitive processes (e.g., attention, appraisal, interpretation, problem-solving, reasoning) and self-reported thoughts and attitudes. Some areas of interest:

• Identification of cognitive markers of risk in individuals who are vulnerable to the development of an anxiety disorder. I am particularly interested in the causal role of information processing biases in anxiety;
  Mechanisms of action in exposure-based treatments, in particular imaginal exposure;
• Cognitive characteristics that distinguish individuals with generalized anxiety disorder from those with obsessive-compulsive disorder, with a specific focus on differences in the processing of uncertainty;
• Impact of cognitive training on anxiety and worry

At Ryerson University, I have taught courses on:

• Psychopathology (PSY325 Psychological Disorders, PSY905 Advanced Psychopathology Seminar, PS8301 Psychopathology, PS8707 Cognition and Psychopathology)
• Behaviour therapy (PSY806 Behaviour Modification)
• Cognitive psychology (PSY615 Psychology of Belief and Skepticism and CPSY308 Psychology of Thinking).

Selected Publications:

Koerner, N., Antony, M.M., McCabe, R.E., & Young, L. (in press). Changes in Beliefs about the Social Competence of Self and Others Following Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment. Cognitive Therapy and Research.

MacDonald, E.M., Koerner, N., & Antony, M.M. (in press). Modification of Interpretive Bias: Impact on Anxiety Sensitivity, Information Processing and Response to Induced Bodily Sensations. Cognitive Therapy and Research.

Pawluk, E.J., & Koerner, N. (in press). A Preliminary Investigation of the Association of Impulsivity to Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Personality and Individual Differences.

Anderson, K., Dugas, M.J., Koerner, N., & Radomsky, A.S., Savard, P., & Turcotte, J. (2012). Interpretive style and intolerance of uncertainty in individuals with anxiety disorders: A focus on generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 26, 823 – 832.

Deschenes, S., Dugas, M.J., Fracalanza, K., & Koerner, N. (2012). The role of anger in generalized anxiety disorder. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 41, 261 – 271.

Koerner, N., & Fracalanza, K. (2012). The role of anxiety control strategies in imaginal exposure. In P. Neudeck & H-U Wittchen (Eds.), Exposure therapy: Rethinking the model – Refining the method (pp. 197-216). New York, NY: Springer Press.

Koerner, N., & Antony, M.M. (2010). Special series on disgust and phobic avoidance: A commentary. International Journal of Cognitive Therapy, 3, 52-63.

Koerner, N., & Dugas, M.J. (2008). An investigation of appraisals in individuals vulnerable to excessive worry: The role of intolerance of uncertainty. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 32, 619-638.

Koerner, N., & Dugas, M.J. (2006). A cognitive model of generalized anxiety disorder: The role of intolerance of uncertainty. In G.C.L. Davey & A. Wells (Eds.), Worry and its psychological disorders: Theory, assessment & treatment. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.