Dr. Rebecca Pillai Riddell
Director, Professor and Associate Vice-President Research, Opportunities to Understand Childhood Hurt (OUCH) Lab, Faculty of Health, Department of Psychology, York University
infant, toddler, preschooler, vaccination, parenting behaviours, emotion regulation, children's distress, acute pain, pain responses during vaccines, pain assessment, needle pain, early childhood mental health, distress emotion expression
Media
Babies and skin-to-skin contact
Parents can help minimize children's pain from vaccinations, study says
Systematic review: predisposing, precipitating, perpetuating, and present factors predicting anticipatory distress to painful medical procedures in children
by Racine*, N., Pillai Riddell, R., Taddio, A. Khan*, M., Calic*, M., Tablon*, P
Published by Journal of Pediatric Psychology
March 1, 2016
Development of cardiovascular indices of acute pain responding in infants: A systematic review and meta-analysis
by Waxman*, J., Pillai Riddell, R. R., Pinhasov*, A., Schmidt, L. A., Tablon*, P
Published by Pain Research and Management
April 20, 2016
Do Infant and Caregiver Behaviours during Immunization Predict Attachment: An Exploratory Study
by Horton*, R., Lisi*, D.L., Pillai Riddell, R.R
Published by Attachment and Human Development
January 1, 2016
Exposure-based interventions for the management of individuals with high levels of needle fear across the lifespan: A clinical practice guideline and call for further research
by McMurtry C.M., Taddio A., Noel M., Antony M.M., Chambers C.T., Asmundson G.J.G., Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
April 1, 2016
Preschool anticipatory distress to immunization pain: understanding development
by Racine*, N., Pillai Riddell, R., Flora, D., Taddio, A., Greenberg, S., & Garfield. H
Published by Pain
September 1, 2016
Does caregiver behaviour mediate the relationship between cultural individualism and infant pain at 12 months of Age?
by O’Neill*, M., Pillai Riddell, R. R., Flora, D., Garfield, H., & Greenberg, S
Published by Journal of Pain
December 1, 2016
Invited Commentary. Using only behaviours to assess infant pain: a painful compromise?
by Pillai Riddell, R., Fitzgerald, M., Slater, R., Stevens, B., Johnston, C., & Campbell-Yeo, M
Published by PAIN
August 1, 2016
Beyond Acute Pain: Understanding Pain that Persists in Infancy
by DiLorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., & Holstii, L
Published by Children
November 9, 2016
A longitudinal randomized trial of the relative effectiveness of additive pain interventions during vaccination in infants
by Taddio, A., Pillai Riddell, R., Ipp, M., Moss, S., Baker, S., Tolkin, J., …Stephens, D
Published by Journal of Pain
February 13, 2017
Age-related patterns in cancer pain and its psychosocial impact: investigating the role of variability in physical and mental health quality of life
by Gauthier, L., Dworkin, R.H., Warr, D., Pillai Riddell, R.R., Macpherson, A., Rodin, G. & Gagliese, L
Published by Pain Medicine
April 1, 2018
A systematic review of the interrelationships among children’s coping responses, children’s coping outcomes, and parent cognitive-affective, behavioral, and contextual variables in the needle-related procedures context
by Campbell*, L., Di Lorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Journal of Pediatric Psychology
July 1, 2017
Parent-led interventions in reducing infant vaccination pain after participation in a longitudinal randomized control trial
by McNair, C., Fung, M., Taddio, A., Ipp, M., Moss, S., Baker, S., Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Pediatrics and Child Health
July 1, 2017
Preschool needle pain responding: establishing 'normal'
by Waxman*, J., DiLorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., Flora, D., Greenberg, S., & Garfield, H
Published by Journal of Pain
June 1, 2017
A longitudinal randomized trial of the impact of consistent pain management for infant vaccinations on future vaccination distress
by Taddio, A., Pillai Riddell, R., Ipp, M., Moss, S., Baker, S., Tolkin, J., …Stephens, D
Published by Journal of Pain
September 1, 2017
Preschool children's coping responses and outcomes in the vaccination context: child and caregiver transactional and longitudinal relationships
by Campbell*, L., Pillai Riddell, R., Cribbie, C., Garfield, H., & Greenberg, S
Published by Pain
February 1, 2018
To look or not to look during vaccination: A pilot randomized trial
by Mithal, P., Pillai Riddell, R., et al
Published by Clinical Journal of Pain
January 5, 2018
The ABCD's of pain management: A double-blind randomized controlled trial for a brief educational video for parents of young children undergoing vaccination
by Pillai Riddell, R., O’Neill*, M., Campbell*, L., Taddio, A., Greenberg, S., & Garfield, H
Published by Journal of Pediatric Psychology
November 14, 2017
Developing a measure of distress-promoting parent behaviours during infant vaccination: assessing reliability and validity
by Pillai Riddell** *, R., Gennis** *, H., Tablon*, P., Greenberg, S., & Garfield, H
Published by Canadian Journal of Pain
June 14, 2018
Distress responses in a routine vaccination context: Relationships to early child school readiness and mental health
by Racine*, N., Gennis*, H., Pillai Riddell, R., Greenberg, S., & Garfield, H
Published by Children
February 1, 2018
Parental psychological distress moderates the impact of a video intervention to help parents manage young child vaccination pain
by Gennis*, H., Pillai Riddell, R., O’Neill*, M., Katz, J., Taddio, A., Garfield, H., & Greenberg, S
Published by Journal of Pediatric Psychology
August 17, 2018
Infant clinical pain assessment: Core behavioural cues
by Di Lorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., Flora, D., & Craig, K
Published by Journal of Pain
September 19, 2018
Understanding the relative contributions of sensitive and insensitive parent behaviors on infant vaccination pain
by Badovinac*, S., Gennis*, H., Pillai Riddell, R., Garfield, H., & Greenberg, S
Published by Children
June 18, 2018
Associations between mother-preschooler attachment and maternal depression symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis
by Badovinac*, S., Martin*, J., Guérin-Marion, C., O’Neill*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., Bureau, J-F., & Spiegel*, R
Published by PLoS ONE
October 2, 2018
Pain in Child Health from 2002 to 2015: The Early Years of an International Research Training Initiative
by Von Baeyer, C. Stevens, B., Craig, K., Finley, A., Johnston, C., Grunau, R., Chambers, C., Pillai Riddell, R., Stinson, J. & McGrath P
Published by Canadian Journal of Pain
October 15, 2018
Parental report of self and child worry during acute pain: a critical factor in determining parental pain judgment
by Mamedova*, K., DiLorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., & Flora D
Published by Clinical Journal of Pain
August 1, 2019
Age related differences in the acute pain facial expression during infancy
by O’Neill*, M., Ahola Kohut*, S., Pillai Riddell, R., & Oster, H
Published by European Journal of Pain
October 23, 2019
Nociception and the newborn brain: non-pharmacological approaches to pain management
by Bucsea*, O, Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine
August 24, 2019
Enhancing the student experience through exposure to university researchers: a quasi cluster-randomized controlled study
by Gennis*, H., Pillai Riddell, R., Spiegel*, R., Martin*, J., & Connolly, J.
Published by Innovations in Education and Teaching International
August 27, 2019
An examination of the reciprocal and concurrent relationships between behavioural and cardiac indicators of acute pain in toddlerhood
by Waxman* J., DiLorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., Flora, D., Schmidt, L., Garfield, H., Flanders, D., Weinberg, E., & Savlov, D
Published by Pain
January 1, 2020
Convergence of behavioral and cardiac indicators of distress in toddlerhood: A systematic review and narrative synthesis
by Waxman* J., DiLorenzo*, M., & Pillai Riddell, R
Published by International Journal of Behavioural Development
June 24, 2020
Quantification of neonatal procedural pain severity: A platform for estimating total pain burden in individual infants
by Laudano-Dray, M.P., Pillai Riddell, R., Jones, L., Iyer, R., Whitehead, K., Fitzgerald, M., Fabrizi, L., Meek, J
Published by Pain
June 1, 2020
Opioid exposure and cognitive development: Unpacking clinical relevance
by Gennis*, H. & Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Journal of Pediatric Psychology
May 15, 2020
Investigating convergence of cardiac and behavioral indicators of distress during routine vaccinations over the second year of life
by Waxman*, J., DiLorenzo*, M., Pillai Riddell, R., Flora, D., Schmidt, L., Garfield, H., Flanders, D., Weinberg, E., & Savlov, D
Published by Developmental Psychobiology
October 11, 2020
The impact of parental contact upon cortical noxious-related activity in human neonates
by Jones, L., Laudano-Dray, P., Whitehead, K, Meek, J., Fitzgerald, M., **Fabrizi, L., &** Pillai Riddell., R
Published by European Journal of Pain
September 23, 2020
Longitudinal and concurrent relationships between caregiver-child behaviours in the vaccination context and preschool attachment
by O’Neill*, M., Pillai Riddell, R.R., Bureau, J-F, Deneault, A-A., Garfield, H., & Greenberg, S
Published by Pain
March 1, 2021
The longitudinal and concurrent relationship between caregiver sensitivity and preschool attachment: A systematic review and meta-analysis
by O’Neill*, M., Pillai Riddell, R, Badovinac*, S. Bureau, JF, Martin, J.
Published by PLOS One
January 22, 2021
Psychosocial and neurobiological vulnerabilities of the hospitalized preterm infant and relevant non-pharmacological pain mitigation strategies
by Shiff*, I., Bucsea*, O., & Pillai Riddell, R
Published by Frontiers in Pediatrics
In press
Associations between early childhood parent-child attachment and internalizing/ externalizing symptoms: A systematic review and narrative synthesis
by Badovinac*, S., Pillai Riddell, R., Deneault, A.A., Martin, J., Bureau, J.F., & O’Neill*, M
Published by Marriage and Family Review
In press
Nonpharmacological interventions for needle-related procedural pain and post-operative pain in neonates and infants 3rd Edition
by Pillai Riddell, R.R., Bucsea*, O., Shiff*, I., Gennis*, H., Badovinac*, S., DiLorenzo, M., Racine, N., Ahola Kohut*, S., Lisi, D. M., Turcotte, K., Stevens, B., & Uman, L. S
Published by Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
Biography
Dr. Rebecca Pillai Riddell is the director of the Opportunities to Understand Childhood Hurt (OUCH) Laboratory (www.yorku.ca/ouchlab) at York University, Canada. She is a Full Professor at York University and was also appointed Associate Vice-President of Research in 2017. As both a basic behavioural scientist and a clinical psychologist, Pillai Riddell leads a world-renown research program in infant and young child pain that seeks to understand pain from a psychological, social and biological perspective. Among her award-winning research accomplishments, she built the largest cohort in the world studying young child and parent interactions in vaccinations over the first five years of life. Her research often focuses on the power of parents to make vaccinations less painful now and in the future for young children. Her newest program of research takes an innovative step forward in the exploration of using artificial intelligence to move the practice of infant pain assessment forward.
Recognition/Reconnaissance
The York University’s Presidential Emerging Research Leadership Award 2016 | Professional
Top Cited Review 2017 Cochrane Collaboration (ranked 5th out of over 200 Reviews internationally) | Professional
The York University’s Faculty of Graduate Studies Outstanding Teaching Award 2018 | Professional
The American Pain Society’s Jeffrey Lawson Award for Advocacy in Children’s Pain Relief 2019 | Professional
Member, Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists 2019 | Professional
The Outstanding Pain Mentorship Award of the Canadian Pain Society 2020 | Professional
Additional Titles and Affiliations
University of Toronto
Adjunct Professor – Department of Psychiatry and Pharmacy
Hospital for Sick Children
Clinician Researcher
University of Guelph
Special Graduate Faculty
University College London
Honorary Full Professor
York University
Associate Vice-President Research and Full Professor
Research Grants
Grant amount: $275 799
Details:
Rebooting Infant Pain Assessment: Using Machine Learning to Exponentially Improve Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Practice (Ethical and Sociocultural Implications for Computer-Assisted Decision Making in the NICU)
Organization: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)Grant amount: $266 780
Details:
Rebooting Infant Pain Assessment: Using Machine Learning to Exponentially Improve Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Practice (Integrating New Physiological Mathematical Models into Machine Learning)
Organization: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)Grant amount: $941 779
Details:
Rebooting Infant Pain Assessment: Using Machine Learning to Exponentially Improve Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Practice (Implications for Infant Pain Assessment)
Discovery Grant
Organization: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)Grant amount: $165 000
Details:
ParentChild Cardiac Convergence During Distress:
Longitudinal and Cross-sectional Mechanisms of Early Regulatory Processes