About
My research spans a range of topics in social and personality psychology.
I’ve studied how people make judgements about government propaganda, why we engage with media we claim to hate, and how stories influence our moral development.
I love teaching. I’ve designed and instructed courses in both Developmental and Personality psychology.
For seven years, I ran a small business called Reach Tutoring which employed university students and served families in the Kitchener Waterloo Region.
Below you’ll find highlights from my CV. For a complete version, click here.
Professional Roles
2025
Lecturer : Personality Psychology
York University
- Original course content, assignments, exams
2025
Lecturer: Developmental Psychology
York University
- Original course content, assignments, exams
2020 — 2024
Teaching Assistant
York University
- Cultural Psychology, Personality Psychology, Introduction to Research Methods
2016 — 2023
Founder
Reach Tutoring
- Designed personalized education plans
- Managed and trained tutors across disciplines
- Early literacy tutoring
- Managed outreach and advertising
2018 — 2019
Coordinator: Tutoring and Learning Centre
George Brown College
- Developed educational materials and workshops
- Managed and trained tutors
- Conducted performance reviews
- ESL and Professional Writing tutoring
- Office administration and scheduling
Research Roles
2020 — Now
Graduate Researcher
The Mar Lab
Dr. Raymond Mar
2026 — Now
Affiliated Graduate Researcher
Psychological Philosophy Lab
Dr. Laura Soter & Dr. Johannes Mahr
2020 — 2022
Affiliated Graduate Researcher
The Cultural Collective Lab
Dr. Richard Lalonde
2020
Research Practicum
Wisdom and Culture Lab
Dr. Igor Grossman
2019 — 2020
Thesis Student
Child Cognition Lab
Dr. Ori Friedman
2018 — 2020
Research Assistant
Language and Infant Development Lab
Dr. Katherine White
Publications
Mar, R. A., Dunk, R. J., Shoemaker, L. H. (Forthcoming). The Benefits of Reading Narrative Fiction. Current Opinions in Psychology.
Dunk, R. J., Lo, R. F., & Mar, R. A. (2026). Judgements of Propaganda Near and Far: National Identity and Media Evaluations. European Journal of Social Psychology, 56(1), 147-159.
Dunk, R. J. & Mar, R. A. (2025). The morals of (and in) stories. In the Handbook of Ethics and Social Psychology (pp. 256-267). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Quinlan, J. A., Dunk, R. J., & Mar, R. A. (2023). Weird reactions to weird Twitter: How expectation and intention relate to appreciation for absurd humor. Psychology of Popular Media, 13(3), 303.
Dunk, R. J. & Mar, R. A. (2022) Cognitive exploration drives engagement and re-engagement with imaginary worlds, but not spatial exploration as predicted by evolutionary theory. Behavioral & Brain Sciences, 45.
Dunk, R. J., Goulding, B. W., Fugelsang, J. A., & Friedman, O. (2021). Butt-dialing the devil: Evil agents are expected to disregard intentions behind requests. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 96, 104188.
Manuscripts Under Review & In Prep
Dunk, R.J. & Barranti, M. (Under Review). Examining undergraduate skepticism towards university.
Dunk, R. J., Quinlan, J. A., Padgett, J. & Mar, R. A (Under Review). Negative Parasocial Relationships on Social Media.
Dunk, R. J., Mar, R. A., & White, C. J. (In prep.) Parents’ beliefs in free will and their disciplinary consistency.
Dunk, R. J., & Mar, R. A. (In prep.) Firm believers: Reflecting on a child’s agency or susceptibility to the environment does not affect punishment severity.
Dunk, R. J., & Mar, R. A. (In prep.) Agency goals, discipline, and childhood outcomes.
Awards & Recognitions
2026
Norman Endler Fellowship Nomination
$1000
York University
2025
SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship
$80,000
Ministry of Colleges and University
2025
Ontario Graduate Scholarship (Declined)
$15,000
Ministry of Colleges and University
2025
Sandra Pyke Award for Graduate Student Excellence
York University
2024
Ontario Graduate Scholarship
$15,000
Ministry of Colleges and University
2024
Conference Travel Award
$500
Faculty of Health – York University
2023
Certificate of Academic Excellence
Canadian Psychological Association
2023
Ontario Graduate Scholarship
$15,000
Ministry of Colleges and University
2025
Thesis Prize Nomination
York University
2025
Silver Medal Undergraduate Essay Prize
Philosophy Department – University of Waterloo
2024
President’s Scholarship
$2,000
University of Waterloo
Mentorship
2026
Co-supervisor : Honours Thesis
The Mar Lab
Student: Julie Vuong
2022 — 2023
Vice President
Psychology Undergraduate Mentorship Program
York University
2020 — 2023
Graduate Mentor
Psychology Undergraduate Mentorship Program
York University
2021
Co-supervisor : Honours Thesis
Cultural Collective Lab
Student: Kelly Acevedo Benitez
