Guiding our team is…
Professor Silvia Canetto
Professor Canetto studies cultural norms, beliefs and narratives of femininity and masculinity in four domains. A stream of her research examines cultural norms, stereotypes and narratives of women’s and men’s interest, persistence and success in science, technology, math and engineering (STEM). A second stream of her research explores cultural scripts of gender and suicidal behaviors–including suicidal thoughts, nonfatal suicidal behavior, suicide, and assisted suicide–across intersectionalities of age, sexual orientation, social class, and disability. Her third research area is on stereotypes of gender, aging and sexual orientation. Finally, she studies cultural and gender issues in human rights.
CSU Professor Canetto receives prestigious 2020 Dublin Award from the American Association of Suicidology
Professor Canetto the recipient of this year’s Louis I. Dublin Award, a national award bestowed by the American Association of Suicidology. The Dublin award recognizes “lifetime achievement and outstanding contributions to the field of suicide prevention.”
CSU Professor Canetto honored with 2019 American Psychological Association’s Heritage Award
Professor Canetto was awarded the prestigious Heritage
Award of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Society for
the Psychology of Women. APA’s Heritage Award recognizes
distinguished, long-standing contributions to research and teaching on
women and gender.
CSU Professor Canetto honored with 2019 International Council of Psychologists’(ICP) Denmark-Gunvald Award
Professor Canetto received the International Council of Psychologists’(ICP) Denmark-Gunvald Award for feminist research and service. Her Denmark-Gunvald Award invited address was on the human rights of women and was presented at the 2019 ICP convention in Cadiz, Spain.CSU Professor Canetto honored with 2018 American Psychological Association’s Denmark Reuder Award
Professor Canetto is the recipient of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) 2018 Denmark Reuder Award. This APA Division of International Psychology’s award recognizes outstanding international contributions to the psychology of women and gender.
For more information, please visit Professor Canetto’s web page.
Graduate Team Members
Chiara Guida | Social Psychology
Education:
M.S., Doctorate. Guida joined Prof. Canetto’s research team for a year (2023-2024) when she was Visiting Research Scholar at Colorado State University. In 2025 Guida completed her doctorate in Social Psychology at the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, specializing in Sciences of the Mind (Prof. Marini, primary advisor).
Research:
Guida has extensive experience in research on discrimination and social inequalities, particularly towards women, ethnic minorities, and the LGBTQ+ community. Guida’s current work explores how beliefs, stereotypes, and biases shape attitudes toward these groups. Using advanced methodologies like Implicit Association Tests, Guida aims to understand the role these beliefs play in reinforcing discriminatory practices and social exclusion, with the goal of informing more inclusive and equitable social policies.
Emily Krmpotich | Clinical Psychological Sciences 
Education:
Krmpotich is a PhD candidate in Clinical Psychology at Colorado State University. Krmpotich has an undergraduate degree in psychology from The Catholic University, Washington, DC, and is completing a master’s in general psychology at California State University, Sacramento.
Research:
Krmpotich has research experience in both suicide prevention and cultural and community psychology. Krmpotich hopes to work as a clinical psychologist serving a diversity of populations.
Amber Winters | Clinical Psychological Sciences
Education:
Amber Winters is a PhD candidate in Clinical Psychology at Colorado State University. Winters holds a master’s in psychology research methods from the University of St. Andrews and an undergraduate degree in clinical/community psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Research:
Winters has years of experience in suicide prevention and intervention research with the U.S. military and clinical work in rural health settings. Winters’ current research focuses on males suicide scripts across the lifespan. Winters aims to enhance mental health and suicide prevention efforts through a multidisciplinary and intersectional approach.
Christine Dunne | Counseling Psychology
Education:
B.A. in Psychology from The College of New Jersey; M.S. in Psychology from Colorado State University, currently in PhD in Counseling Psychology at Colorado State University (expected graduation Spring 2026)
Research:
My research focuses on women’s experiences in science and engineering fields. My thesis focused on factors that impact women’s interest in an academic career and was a quantitative design. My dissertation is a qualitative study that further examines women’s experiences, values, and priorities that impact women’s career goals and plans in engineering.
Undergraduate Team Members
Jessica Burns | General Psychology, Gender Studies
Education:
Undergraduate degrees in Psychology (B.S.) and Women & Gender Studies (B.A.) from Colorado State University, 2025.
Research:
Burns hopes to research how gender, cultural norms, and cognition interact to shape mental health outcomes in graduate school. Burns is particularly interested in cultural scripts of adolescent male suicide and how these scripts may influence thinking and behavior about suicide.
Samantha Loeffler | I/O Psychology
Education:
Undergraduate degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology (B.S), Colorado State University (in progress)
Research:
Loeffler hopes to research how language can affect people’s views on gender, sexuality, and overall identity. Loeffler would also like to research how employees’ cultural background affects the workplace culture, and if the inclusion of different cultures in a company’s foundation and marketing could improve the company in different ways, such as business success and employee satisfaction.
Samuel Pausback | General Psychology, Philosophy of Science
Education:
Undergraduate degree in psychology and philosophy from Colorado State University, 2025. Masters Candidate in Developmental Psychopathology, Durham University.
Research:
Pausback is currently working alongside Winter researching scripts for suicide prevention among adolescent males in Colorado. Going forward, Pausback hopes to research social scripts of suicide among people on the autism spectrum, with a particular focus on young adults and adolescents.
Lily Roth | General Psychology
Education:
Undergraduate degree in psychology from Colorado State University, 2025.
Research:
Roth’s current research is on predictors of female STEM graduate students’ interest in an academic career. In the future, Roth hopes to research autism spectrum disorder, especially among gifted women.