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Dr. Deirdre Dawson

Dr. Deirdre Dawson

Senior Scientist, Rotman Research Institute

Member, Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, University of Toronto

Professor and Interim Chair, Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto

Research Focus

Aging & Brain Health

My research program aims (1) to understand how impairments in cognitive processes that arise from acquired brain disorders and aging affect people’s abilities to be autonomous in community living, and (2) to develop and evaluate effective interventions that train individuals to manage these impairments so they can participate fully in their everyday life. To understand how these impairments affect everyday life, I am developing assessments of how people perform routine tasks in everyday life when some novelty is introduced. I am also characterizing the strategies used in relation to cognitive abilities. As well, I am involved in the development of interventions involving cognitive training, individualized goal setting, nutrition and social engagement, with funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and with colleagues from the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging (CCNA; ccna-ccnv.ca). We believe these interventions have the potential to prevent cognitive and behavioural decline and to promote well-being and quality of life, and we seek to understand how this occurs.

Research Technologies

Intervention research Patient-based research