People
Director
Joseph Murray
Joseph Murray is a full professor at the Postgraduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas. He previously worked and studied at the University of Cambridge, in departments of criminology and psychiatry, before moving to Brazil and working on the Pelotas birth cohort studies since 2010. His research aims to understand how bio-psycho-social factors influence psychosocial development and violence through the life-course, and the impact of preventive interventions. He co-directs the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study. He received the Manuel Lopez-Rey prize, and the Nigel Walker prize in criminology from the University of Cambridge, and the Distinguished New Scholar Award from the American Society of Criminology Division of Corrections and Sentencing. Previously, he held fellowships with the British Academy, Darwin College Cambridge, and the Wellcome Trust. He currently holds a Wellcome Trust Investigator Award, and a CNPq level 2 highly productive researcher award. Email: j.murray@doveresearch.org
Research Associates
Alicia Matijasevich
Dr. Alicia Matijasevich graduated in Medicine with specialization in Paediatrics and Neonatology. She holds a PhD in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas, Brazil. In 2007 she completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol. Alicia has experience in the design, coordination and data analysis of epidemiological studies. She has been working with cohort studies, coordinating several research projects in Brazil, for over twenty years. Alicia is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Her research interests include: mental health of mothers and their offspring, assessment of cognitive and non-cognitive skills in children and adolescents, and the study of inequalities in health and health care from a life course perspective. Email: alicia.matijasevich@fm.usp.br
Adriane Arteche
Adriane Arteche is a Psychologist with a Master and PhD in Developmental Psychology. She is currently an Adjunct Professor and the Head Coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Psychology, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). She has previously worked as a Research Associate at the University of Reading and at Oxford University. Her main research interests are in intergenerational transmission of affective disorders, and, in particular, the effects of parenting and primary care and adverse experiences on children's cognitive and emotional development. She holds a CNPq Level 2 highly productive researcher award. Email: adriane.arteche@pucrs.br
Andrea Gonzalez
Andrea Gonzalez, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences at McMaster University, Canada. She holds a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Family Health and Preventive Interventions and was recently inducted in the Royal Society of Canada as a New College Member. Currently, she is an Editorial Board Member for the journals Archives of Women’s Mental Health, Child Abuse & Neglect and Child Maltreatment and is a member of the Public Health Agency of Canada’s Child Maltreatment Surveillance Working Group, as well as the World Health Organization’s Extending the Benefits Across the Life Course Working Group. Her research program focuses on the developmental consequences of early life adversity; the impact of traumatic experience on brain development, behavioral outcomes and health; the intergenerational transmission of risk; and developing and evaluating evidence-based preventive interventions. Her previous training encompasses psychology, neuroscience, and epidemiology with specific emphasis on assessing preventive interventions, maternal and child health, parenting, and family violence. Email: gonzal@mcmaster.ca
Gemma Hammerton
Gemma is a Research Fellow in Epidemiology and Medical Statistics at the University of Bristol, UK. Following a degree in Psychology and PhD in Psychological Medicine from Cardiff University, she was awarded a Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship which began in 2018 at the University of Bristol. This fellowship involves testing explanations for the long-term consequences of childhood behavioural problems across the UK (ALSPAC) and Brazil (1993 Pelotas Birth Cohort). She has expertise in methods for longitudinal data analysis such as structural equation modelling, mediation analysis, and cross-cohort comparisons. Email: gemma.hammerton@bristol.ac.uk
Luciana Tovo-Rodrigues
Luciana Tovo-Rodrigues is a biologist with a Ph.D. in Genetics and Molecular Biology from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. She is an Adjunct Professor at the Postgraduate Program in Epidemiology (PPGE), Federal University of Pelotas, where she coordinates the Laboratory of Biological Samples and co-directs the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort. Her main research interests are in biological markers, principally genes, involved in neurodevelopment, the pathophysiology of mental health and violence health-related conditions. She holds a CNPq level 2 highly productive researcher award. Email: luciana.tovo@gmail.com
Michelle Degli Esposti
Michelle Degli Esposti is a Research Associate at DOVE, Federal University of Pelotas. She previously worked and studied at the University of Oxford, UK, in the departments of Psychiatry, Experimental Psychology, and Social Policy & Intervention. Most recently, she was a Research Assistant Professor at the Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention at the University of Michigan, US. Michelle’s research aims to understand the distribution(s) and determinants of violence at the population level, drawing on both descriptive and causal epidemiological methods. One strand of her work focuses on mapping temporal changes in the nature and spatial distribution of violence, including firearm violence. Another strand of her research uses advanced quasi-experimental methods to estimate the impacts of social interventions and policies in shaping – and changing – rates of violence. While Michelle’s current work focuses on Brazil, she is a global researcher spanning Latin America, the USA, and the UK. Email: dr.m.degliesposti@gmail.com
Research Manager
Rafaela Martins
Rafaela Martins holds a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education and a Master's degree in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas. She is currently a Ph.D. student in the Postgraduate Program in Epidemiology at the Federal University of Pelotas, with an exchange period at McMaster University, Canada. She is currently studying stress measured by hair cortisol. She has previously worked on the Pelotas Birth Cohorts studies, the PIÁ trial, and other DOVE projects. Her areas of interest are stress, violence, and life-course epidemiology. Email: rafamartins1@gmail.com
Postdoctoral Researchers
Carolina Coll
Carolina Coll holds Master's and PhD Degrees in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas (UFPel). She currently works as a postdoc researcher at the DOVE and theInternational Center for Equity in Health, and as a scientific advisor for the Lancet Commission on Gender-based Violence and Maltreatment of Young People. In 2020, she was awarded a Wellcome Trust International Training Fellowship. Her research aims to understand the impact of domestic violence on parental practices and child development in the context of low- and middle-income countries, including Brazil. Email: ccoll@equidade.org
Eduardo Viegas da Silva
Eduardo Viegas da Silva holds a Master Degree in Health Technology Assessment, and a PhD Degree in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas (UFPel). He currently works as a postdoc researcher at DOVE, and as epidemiologist at the State Health Department of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. He researches the design of health systems to promote equity and assesses the impact of interventions on parent-child interactions and on child development as a means to reduce inequalities across the life cycle. Email: eduviegassilva@gmail.com
Gessyka Wanglon Veleda
Gessyka is a psychologist and postdoctoral researcher at DOVE. She has a specialization in Health with an emphasis on High Complexity from the Integrated Multidisciplinary Health Residency Program at the Federal University of Santa Catarina, as well as a master's and doctorate in Health and Behavior from the Catholic University of Pelotas. She is currently working on the 2015 Birth Cohort study in Pelotas. E-mail: gessykawveleda@gmail.com
Jacob Turner
Jacob Turner is a postdoctoral researcher at DOVE with a PhD in Political Science and a Masters in Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics (ACMS) from the University of Notre Dame. He researches how contact with state institutions, especially law enforcement, impact the development of trust, civic participation, and norms about violence among citizens of democratic societies. Email: turnerjacobr13@gmail.com
Marina Carpena
Marina Carpena is a psychologist with a Master's degree in Public Health from the Federal University of Rio Grande (FURG), and a Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas. Her research is on biological and environmental/social determinants of mental disorders through the life course. In 2022, she was granted a Wellcome Trust Early Career Award to examine the relationship between sleep and mental health from the perspectives of epidemiology and genetics, and to investigate how this relationship is affected by early adverse events and exposure to stress throughout childhood and adolescence. Email: marina_carpena@hotmail.com
Romina Buffarini
Romina Buffarini has a Master’s and a Ph.D. degree in Epidemiology, with emphasis on Life-Course Models, from the Federal University of Pelotas. She is a postdoctoral researcher at DOVE, and works on the 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study. Her current research focuses on violence against women and children. Email: romibuffarini@gmail.com
Thais Martins
Thais Martins graduated in nutrition and public health, specialising in family health. She obtained her Master's and Ph.D. degrees in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas, where she is undertaking post-doctoral studies at DOVE. Her current research focuses on mental health, especially on factors related to antisocial behaviour. Email: thaismartins@doveresearch.org
Postgraduate Students
Andressa Cardoso
Andressa Cardoso holds a Bachelor's and a Master's Degree in Nutrition from the Federal University of Pelotas, where she is currently a Ph.D. student in the Postgraduate Programme in Epidemiology. Her research interests are health inequalities, violence, and children's general and cognitive development. Email: andressacardoso.nutri@outlook.com Supervisor: Joseph Murray Co-supervisor: Rafaela Costa Martins
Luciana Perrone
Luciana Perrone graduated in Dentistry from the Fluminense Federal University. During her undergraduate studies, she was involved in research projects on early childhood caries and later worked as a dentist in private clinics for ten years. Currently, she is a PhD student in Epidemiology at the Federal University of Pelotas. She studies the impact of violence against children on cognitive functioning. She is responsible for information about the instruments already applied in te 2015 Pelotas Birth Cohort. Email: lucianarodriguesperrone@gmail.com Supervisor: Joseph Murray Co-supervisor: Andreas Bauer
Vanessa Barbosa
Vanessa Barbosa is a psychologist. She graduated from the Federal University of Rio Grande. She is currently a Master's student in the Postgraduate Program in Epidemiology at Federal University of Pelotas. Her research interests are human development, practice of interpersonal violence and aggressive behavior. Email: vanessabarbc@gmail.com Supervisor: Joseph Murray Co-supervisor: Eduardo Viegas da Silva
Statistical Consultant
Cauane Blumenberg
Cauane Blumenberg has a BS in Computer Science from the Catholic University of Pelotas (2011), a MSc in Computer Science from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (2014) and a PhD in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas (2018), with a PhD exchange period at the University of Turin, Italy (2017). Cauane is a Researcher at the International Center for Equity in Health (Pelotas, Brazil), and a colaborating Professor at the Post-Graduate Program in Epidemiology from the Federal University of Pelotas. He is the owner of causale, a consulting business on statistics, research and data collection. His research interests include the study of health inequalities, survey methodology and the application of data science for health sciences. Email: cauane.epi@gmail.com
Research Project Manager
Vince Evans Gutiérrez
Vincent Evans Gutierrez holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the University of the West of England and a Master’s degree in Public Health in Disasters from the Karolinska Institute. His background is in the implementation and management of health-related projects ranging from long-term research projects to acute humanitarian emergency interventions. He is an associate lecturer at the University of Oviedo, Spain, where he teaches on a range of field-work related topics. His areas of interest are disaster risk reduction, health promotion and stakeholder engagement. Email Vinceeg@gmail.com
Research assistant
Alânis Goularte da Fonseca
Alânis Goularte da Fonseca is a tenth-semester law student at the Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPel) and an assistant researcher at the DOVE group. She is currently working on the DOVE crime project with data from the 1982 Birth Cohort.
Andréa de Oliveira Lopes
Andréa de Oliveira Lopes is a lawyer with a degree from the Catholic University of Pelotas and professional experience in the Civil and Labor areas, working in all three levels of jurisdiction. She is currently working on the DOVE crime project with data from the 1982 Birth Cohort.
Matheus de Lima Weege
Matheus de Lima Weege is a physical educator and holds a master's degree in Physical Education from the Federal University of Pelotas, where he is currently a doctoral student in the Postgraduate Program in Physical Education at the Higher School of Physical Education and Physiotherapy at the Federal University of Pelotas. At Dove, he works to standardize databases linked to the Monitoring Group for Physical Activity and Safety in Pelotas - MAPAS Pelotas.
Administration
Tainá Sigales
Tainá Sigales is an administrator and financial manager for DOVE projects. She holds a degree in Nutrition and a Master's degree in Nutrition and Food from the Federal University of Pelotas. E-mail: secretaria@doveresearch.org