Ryan Stevenson named as Western University Faculty Scholar

March 17, 2022

Ryan Stevenson, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology

Photo by Rob Rombouts

Ryan Stevenson, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology has been named as a Western University Faculty Scholar for 2022.

Stevenson’s overarching research goal is to understand the brain mechanisms underlying the development of sensory processing and its underlying contributions to cognitive development in diverse developmental populations, including children with autism and other developmental disabilities.

He has secured more than $4.7M dollars in research funding to support his world-renowned research programme from agencies such as NSERC, SSHRC, NIH, and Simon’s Foundation for Autism Research (SFARI), the Kids Brain Health Network, and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).

His research impact has had remarkable impact in basic science and for applied sciences for childhood mental health and wellbeing. Stevenson’s research was the first to show that behavioural measures of sensory processing in autism spectrum disorders are directly related to clinical symptoms and cognitive development, particularly communicative abilities. The first article reporting these results was published in the very prestigious Journal of Neuroscience and has been cited over 420 times.

Stevenson is a core member of the Brain and Mind Institute, an adjunct professor in Western’s Department of Psychiatry and Program in Neuroscience, and is an adjunct member of York University’s Centre for Vision Sciences. He is also Associate Chair – Research for the department of Psychology.

Stevenson has made significant contributions to teaching through mentorship as well as graduate and undergraduate teaching. Stevenson leads a burgeoning research lab, currently supervising 1 postdoctoral fellow, 5 PhD graduate students, 2 MSc graduate students, 6 undergraduate honours students, and numerous independent study students and volunteers.

Established in 2005, the Faculty Scholars Award recognizes significant recent scholarly achievements in teaching or research. Nominated by faculty deans and selected by the Faculty Selection committee chaired by the Provost, the recipients have an international presence in their discipline and are considered all-round scholars. Winners hold the title “Faculty Scholar” for two years and receive $7,000 each year for scholarly activities, as well as receiving a citation.