Our People

Affiliate Members

Dr. Anna McCoy

B.A., M.A., PhD and Board Certified Behaviour Analyst- Doctoral (BCBA-D)

Anna is a graduate of the National University of Ireland Galway, where she completed a Masters and PhD in Applied Behaviour Analysis. She is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst- Doctoral (BCBA-D) with thirteen years experience working with children with varying diagnoses of developmental and cognitive disabilities. Anna is the clinical director in ABACAS Special School for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and complex needs in Drogheda. In this role, Anna has developed and continues to co-ordinate the use of Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) models in the treatment of behaviours that challenge. Anna has a special interest in the area of social skills development and the efficacy of social skills curricula/ programmes, that include behavioural approaches, for children and young persons with ASD. 

Dr. Amanda Nally

Clinical Director, Lizard Centre, Australia. Email: nally.amanda@gmail.com

Amanda completed her master’s as well as her and PhD in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) at NUI Galway. She has over a decade of experience applying the principles of learning to individuals with disabilities and developmental delays. This experience ranges from newly diagnosed infants right through to adults seeking employment. She has published research in the area of reading abilities and the use of reading curricula based upon ABA principles to children with autism spectrum disorder.  She is currently the Clinical Director at Lizard Centre, which is one of Australia’s leading providers of ABA. In this role, Amanda oversees the national clinical governance of services, as well as the learning and development of senior clinicians across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Adelaide. 

Post-doctoral Researcher

Jenny Ferguson

Post-Doctoral Research (DDSkills Project)

Email: janet.ferguson@nuigalway.ie

Jenny is a BCBA and qualified teacher who has worked in the field of behaviour analysis for over 11 years, she has gained experience working in community, clinical and school-based provisions in the UK, Ireland and Canada. Jenny holds an MA in Psychology from the University of Edinburgh, a diploma of education from Aberdeen University and an MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis from Queen’s University Belfast. Jenny has recently finished a research PhD at Queen’s University Belfast, investigating the use of telehealth to provide parent training in strategies designed to increase social communication in young children diagnosed with autism. She has broader research interests in the use of innovative technology to support the needs of children and young people diagnosed with ASD, as well as the use of naturalistic teaching methods designed to enhance communication, play and social skills.  

Research Assistant

Esther Mercado Garrido

Research Assistant

Email: e.mercadogarrido1@nuigalway.ie

Esther holds a BSc in Psychology from the Autonomous University of Madrid with a Diploma in Early Intervention and in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, and a Masters in Educational Counselling. She is currently a PhD student at the National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG) focusing her research on Autism Spectrum Disorder and inclusion. She has been working in the ASD field since 2018 in both educational and clinical settings.  Esther's research interests include social communication, AAC systems, gender, inclusion, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL)."

Current PhD Candidates

Dearbhaile Mahon

PhD Candidate and Galway Doctoral Scholar  Email: d.mahon1@nuigalway.ie 

Dearbhaile holds a BA in Psychological Studies and Sociology and Political Studies and a MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis from the National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG) and a MA in Psychology from the University of Limerick. Dearbhaile is currently a PhD candidate at NUIG undertaking research to identify evidence-based practice to train staff to implement behaviour support plans in the intellectual disability sector. Dearbhaile’s clinical experience across the last 5 years includes working as a home tutor and providing behaviour support within the preschool setting for both children with additional needs and typically developing children, as well as in residential and day settings for individuals with intellectual disabilities.  

Dearbhaile’s research interests include staff training across different sectors and early intervention preventative research. 

Cressida Pacia

PhD Candidate  Email: c.pacia1@nuigalway.ie

Cressida holds a BA in Honours Psychology from the University of Waterloo and an MA in Applied Psychology from University College Cork. Cressida is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA). She has been working with children with autism since 2009. As a PhD candidate at NUI Galway, Cressida is exploring the impact of parent- and sibling-mediated interventions to build social communication skills with young children with ASD. Cressida’s research interests include social communication, naturalistic developmental behavioural interventions (NDBI), family barriers and supports, and collateral effects of intervention.

Rachel Fitzpatrick

PhD Candidate  Email: r.fitzpatrick7@nuigalway.ie 

Rachel is a PhD student in Applied Behaviour Analysis in the School of Psychology at National University of Ireland, Galway. Rachel holds a BA in Psychological Studies and Sociology and MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis from NUIG.  

Rachel’s PhD study examines the prevalence of pain among Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability and evaluating a modified ‘Feeling Better’ pain management programme to increase the communication of pain in individuals with ASD-ID.  

Rachel co-designed a medical skills clinic with a behaviour support team in The Brothers of Charity which aimed to develop and teach a repertoire of medical assessment skills for individuals with ASD-ID who experience anxiety around medical assessments. Rachel has also examined the communication of pain among children with ASD-ID.  

Rachel’s research interest includes prevalence rates of pain, pain management and the communication of pain in children and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability.  

Rachel is a member of The Applied Behavioural Research Clinic and The Centre for Pain Research in NUI Galway. 

Current MSc Students

Adhara Correa Soto

MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis

Email: A.CorreaSoto1@nuigalway.ie

Adhara is currently completing the second year of her Masters in Applied Behaviour Analysis at the National University of Ireland, Galway. She holds a Bachelor of Psychology degree from the University of Huelva (Spain). As a part of her MSc, Adhara completed a placement with Ábalta Special School in the delivery of educational programming for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Currently, Adhara is completing a placement with the Applied Behaviour Research Clinic at NUI Galway. Adhara is working on Staff Training, Virtual Reality to support skills teaching, functional assessment for behaviours that challenge and Feeding interventions.