This research examines how economic inequality affects children’s trust and generosity. In experimental games, children aged 5–9 who experienced unequal rewards trusted decision-makers less, regardless of whether they benefited. Repeated exposure to unfairness may spread mistrust to others, suggesting that early inequality can shape social attitudes and cooperative behavior.

Babies are exceptional learners, possibly because they use surprise to guide attention and learning. My research shows that infants learn more after surprising physical or social events. Adults show a Goldilocks effect—optimal learning from moderate surprise. Understanding surprise-based learning in babies may help improve future artificial intelligence systems.

Adolescent depression is common, severe, and highly recurrent, with risk increasing after each episode. This research studies why some young people relapse while others recover, examining biological stress responses, coping styles, social relationships, and lived experience. The goal is to develop interventions that strengthen long-term resilience and improve mental-health outcomes.