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:

Hood, H., Antony, M.M., Koerner, N., & Monson, C.M. (2010). The effects of safety behaviors on fear reduction during exposure. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 48, 1161-1169.

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., Antony, M.M., & Dugas, M.J. (2010). Limitations of the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale as a primary outcome measure in RCTs of treatments for generalized anxiety disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry, 167, 103-104.

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.

Dugas, M.J., & Koerner, N. (2005). The cognitive behavioural treatment of generalized anxiety disorder: Current status and future directions. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 19, 61-81.