Order of Canada Recipient & Daughter Share Clinical Interests, Career Paths and ADAA Benefits: In Conversation with ADAA Members Gordon Asmundson, PhD and Aleiia Asmundson, BA

Aleia Asmundson I might be the youngest person to ever attend an ADAA conference. His father, renowned Canadian psychologist and professor Gordon JG Asmundson, PhD, has been a member of ADAA for more than 30 years, calling it his “professional home” and attending the annual conference for just as long. Taking his daughter to conferences when she was little may have had an impact on young Aleiia and perhaps influenced her decision to follow in her father’s footsteps, but more likely she enjoyed taking her father’s poster tube and running swinging it towards the adults.

However, next year in Las Vegas (#ADAA2025), Aleiia wants to present her own poster and attend her first ADAA conference as a member and PhD student in psychology at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. Aleiia, currently completing her master’s degree in clinical psychology at the university’s Department of Psychology’s Pain Cognition and Affectation Laboratory, is paving the way toward a career in psychology similar to her father’s, but also creating something of her own. her.

A big order to fulfill

In 2023, Dr. Asmundson received the Order of Canada, the country’s penultimate civilian award for professional achievement and contributions to Canadian society. The psychologist, professor and head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Regina in Saskatchewan has worked tirelessly and passionately to help better understand, explain and treat various anxiety disorders. His primary focus has been post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its overlap with chronic health conditions such as chronic pain.

While Dr. Asmundson continues to work to advance the field of mental health and teach and prepare the next generation of doctors and mental health professionals, his daughter is just beginning her journey. Aleiia admits that having a father so respected and revered in the Canadian world of psychology is a challenge, but both her father and daughter feel she will succeed.

“Now that I’m studying psychology, it’s been great to have him as a mentor,” Aleiia said, “and it turns out I’m also interested in post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain. “I’ve tried to make sure my research doesn’t get too close to his, but I can’t deny that watching him do what he does my entire life didn’t plant a seed in my brain.”

Dr. Asmundson believes Aleiia is thriving in its own right. He is delighted and proud to see her pave her own path, including her decision to become an ADAA member this year (2024), but admits that he has been an influence on her.

“In 11th grade, I had an assignment related to psychology and it included my job and what I do in it,” he told ADAA. “That changed his interest in the field. I think he has already positioned himself very well, pursuing a PhD, publishing his research, networking and attending conferences, and even plans to apply for some ADAA internship awards.”

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Growing up, Aleiia did not fully understand her father’s work, but she was drawn to him. She liked to go to the lab with him and when he was in her office with a client, she would flip through books and read interviews and news articles about him or his work.

“Until fourth or fifth grade, I would say my dad fixes people’s brains,” Aleiia said. “Maybe people thought he was a neurosurgeon or something, but as I got older, I became more interested in what he did. I grew up reading that news, watching him receive awards, and sometimes attending the ceremonies. That led me to psychology. And the idea of ​​potentially reaching his level is a great motivation.”

Aleiia remembers how her father would come home after lectures, particularly ADAA events, and tell her stories. She was fascinated and wanted to have similar experiences as she grew up and began to understand her work and its impact. Dr. Asmundson says he is delighted that she finds meaning in the same areas he has addressed in her career and encourages her, as he does any of his graduate students, to join organizations and apply for scholarships. and research awards.

“When Aleiia indicated interest in anxiety- and depression-related disorders, which occur in the context of pain conditions, I said ADAA is a place he should look,” Dr. Asmundson explained. He added that while his last name can get a foot in the door of various organizations and facilities, Aleiia will be the one to prove her own value in the field of mental health to the next generation.

Geographically distant but closer than ever in mental health care for all

Currently, father and daughter are quite separated; Geographically speaking, a trip from where Aleiia studies in Kingston to her family in Regina takes almost 30 hours.

As in the United States, the impact of the pandemic and the ongoing shortage of mental health professionals have affected the state of mental health care in Canada. Dr. Asmundson says Canada is doing everything it can to fund provincial governments to boost clinical psychology programs at universities (including his own) and increase the number of trained psychologists.

“As a university department head, I know that not only is there a need for doctors, something the government recognizes, but to train them we need more teachers,” Dr. Asmundson said. “There are many open teaching positions in psychology departments at Canadian universities right now.”

Under those circumstances, Aleiia probably won’t have a hard time finding a job when she graduates, and being the daughter of a recipient of the Order of Canada, head of the psychology department, and a distinguished psychologist, she may have an easier time than most, but what Aleiia has for herself is integrity. , passion, dedication and a real desire to help people.

When talking about her current studies, Aleiia reiterates her father’s words about the need to have more students. “It’s a tough program to get into, but definitely valuable right now.” As for her father’s influence, Aleiia sees it as a blessing and a curse, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. “Even in graduate school interviews they asked me about her work. My name is probably associated with him and that makes it complicated since I’m also interested in chronic pain and PTSD, but I love having him as a well-known father in psychology.”

Dr. Asmundson will retire one day, and who better to fill his position (or a similar one) than his daughter? Aleiia knows she is entering a field that needs her, but merit and hard work on her part will take her far from, or perhaps even closer to, her father.