PEOPLE
Principal Investigator (PI)
Asst. Prof. Deniz Özkan
Dr. Deniz Özkan is a faculty member in the Department of Psychology at Marmara University, Istanbul. She received her B.A. in Western Languages and Literature from BoÄŸaziçi University with a minor in Linguistics, and her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Koç University. Her research focuses on individual differences in early language development, individual differences in language processing at various ages, and contextual factors affecting development.
Duru Altınok
Undergraduate Student
Duru Altınok is a 4th year student at the Department of Psychology at BahçeÅŸehir University with a minor in Political Science and International Relations. She was vice president of the BahçeÅŸehir University Psychology Club in 2022–2023. During her undergraduate studies, she had the opportunity to gain experience and make observations in the field through various internships in the clinical and development areas. She is interested in developmental and clinical psychology. Her specific research interests are the emotional regulation, impact of early childhood experiences on adulthood, trauma psychology, art therapy and psychological wellbeing.
Emine Bekil
Undergraduate Student
Emine Bekil is a fourth-year student at MEF University. She has taken on the roles of participating in article discussions and social media content production at Tepe Morality Lab, managed by Beyza Tepe. She has had the opportunity to influence people's psychological development by interning in various developmental play groups. Her research interests include moral development, child-parent interaction, social justice perception, emotional regulation and empathy mechanisms, polyvagal theory, neurodevelopmental differences, and language development.
Yaren Hepgüler
University Graduate
Yaren graduated with a bachelor's degree in Psychology from BahçeÅŸehir University. She was president of the BahçeÅŸehir University Psychology Club in 2022–2023 after three years as a board member. Throughout her undergraduate years, she enriched her life with various activities and discovered yoga. Her deep interest in the integration of mind and body led her to explore emotional regulation awareness through nervous system regulation via yoga, which further expanded her areas of interest. Yaren wants to specialize in clinical psychology and is keenly exploring the process from early childhood to adulthood.
Buse Nihan Ä°pekoÄŸlu
Undergraduate Student
Buse Nihan Ä°pekoÄŸlu is a double-major student studying Psychology (2nd year) and English Language Teaching (4th year). Her research interests include Educational Psychology, Child and Adolescent Psychology, Personality Theories, Cognitive Processes in Language Learning, Cross-cultural Communication, Intercultural Competence, Student Motivation, and Student Psychology. Beyond academics, she enjoys analyzing films and fictional characters through a psychological lens. Buse has conducted quantitative research on the relationship between personality types and language learning preferences and has approximately two years of teaching internship experience.
Neva KocabaÅŸ
Graduate Student
She graduated from BahçeÅŸehir University with a bachelor's degree in Psychology. Now, she is studying her master's degree in Clinical Psychology (with thesis) at Marmara University. She is interested in developmental psychopathology, emotional development, parent-child relantionship, temperament and attachment styles.
Yusuf Ziya Koç
Ph.D Student
Yusuf K. is a Ph.D. student in Guidance and Psychological Counseling and a research assistant in the Psychology Department at Marmara University. He earned his bachelor's degree in Guidance and Psychological Counseling from BoÄŸaziçi University and his master's degree from Marmara University, where he focused on family dynamics and psychological well-being. His doctoral research examines addiction within the family system and its psychological and relational impacts. He is particularly interested in how family dynamics and environmental factors shape individual differences in the development of addictive behaviors.
Halide Sena KoçyiÄŸit
Developmental Psychologist
Halide Sena KoçyiÄŸit graduated from the Department of Psychology at BoÄŸaziçi University. She then completed her master's degree in developmental psychology at BoÄŸaziçi University. Her academic interests include social and epistemic trust in children, intergroup dynamics, and misinformation studies. Halide is currently working as a research assistant in the Department of Psychology at Marmara University.
TuÄŸba Ünzile Öztekin
Undergraduate Student
TuÄŸba completed her BA in Psychology at BahçeÅŸehir University. Her research interests include digital play, pretend play, emotion regulation, and executive functions in early childhood. She has been involved in studies exploring how digitalization shapes children's cognitive and socio-emotional development. Alongside her research, she is gaining clinical experience in various settings, where she observes therapy sessions, assists in psychological assessments, and engages in anamnesis interviews. In clinical practice, she integrates attachment-based and screening-oriented approaches to better understand child and adolescent development. Passionate about child development and clinical psychology, she enjoys bridging research with practice and values interdisciplinary collaboration.
Deniz Åžule Öztürk
Undergraduate Student
Deniz Åžule Öztürk is both a second-year psychology and a first-year English teaching student at MEF University. She is a volunteer on the MEF Vegan social media team and as an English teacher in the Dersdem Birebir Project. Her research interests are the relationship between parental anxiety and cyberchondria, and the impact of climate change on attachment.
Research Assistants
DEVELOPMENT AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES LAB