Dr. Valérie Théorêt

Dr. Théorêt is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, whose research focuses on sexual and dating violence among youth.

She completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the Université du Québec à Montréal, where her dissertation identified gender-specific patterns of teen dating violence and their distinct emotional and relational correlates. She then pursued a postdoctoral fellowship at the Université de Montréal and the Kinsey Institute, where she investigated how undergraduate students interpret non-consensual sexual experiences and how social stigma influences survivors' psychosocial adaptation.

Her research program centers on three areas: 1) examining perceptions, attitudes, and social norms related to sexual and dating violence; 2) identifying typologies and trajectories of dating violence from adolescence to young adulthood; and 3) investigating risk and protective factors for sexual revictimization. She uses a person-centered, integrative approach to better understand and prevent these issues.

Dr. Théorêt's work has been funded by the Fonds de recherche du Quebec – Société et Culture (FRQSC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), and published in peer-reviewed journals specializing in interpersonal violence and adolescence. She has taught undergraduate courses on dating violence, sexual violence, and child maltreatment, and is a licensed psychologist with clinical training in trauma-focused therapy.