The Parenting, Child Development and Sleep Lab
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Lab Members
Professor Liat Tikotzky
Ph.D., Head of Lab
Liat Tikotzky is an associate professor at the Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, in Israel. Dr. Tikotzky is a licensed clinical psychologist, with specific training and expertise in infant, child, and parent sleep. Her research focuses generally on the relationships between parenting and sleep.
Dr. Tikotzky’s research has focused on the longitudinal relationships between sleep-related cognitions in parents and the development of infant sleep patterns, as well as on the role of fathers’ involvement in caregiving and infant sleep development. Currently, Dr. Tikotzky is the principal investigator of a longitudinal study funded by the Israel Science Foundation examining the links between parental sleep disturbances, parental functioning and parent-infant relationships. She is also conducting studies investigating the development of infant sleep by different sleep assessment methods (i.e., actigraphy, sleep diaries and questionnaires).
e-mail: liatti@bgu.ac.il
Dar Ran-Peled
Ph.D. Student
Dar Ran-Peled is a PhD student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. She received her B.A in psychology from BGU and her M.A in clinical psychology from The Hebrew University. She is interested in the links between maternal sleep disturbances and mother-infant relationship.
e-mail: darpeled@gmail.com
Hamutal Ben-Zion
Ph.D. Student
Hamutal Ben-Zion, received her B.A and M.A in psychology from Ben Gurion University and is currently a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at BGU. Her research examines the relationship between parenthood and sleep in solo mothers families.
e-mail: hamutalkatz@gmail.com
Omer Finkelstein
Ph.D. Student
Omer Finkelstein, received her B.A and M.A in psychology from Ben Gurion University and is currently a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at BGU. Her research examines the links between maternal and infant sleep and mother-infant relationship in single mother families.
e-mail: omerfink@post.bgu.ac.il
Avel Horwitz
Ph.D. Student
Avel Horwitz is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. He received his B.A from Tel-Aviv University and his M.A. in clinical psychology from Ben-Gurion University. His research examines the relationship between fathers' involvement in infant care, coparenting and infant sleep.
e-mail: avel.horwitz@gmail.com
Yael Porat-Zaiger
Ph.D. Student
Yael Porat-Zaiger is a PhD student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion Unversity. She received her B.A in psychology from BGU and her M.A in clinical psychology from Haifa University. She is interested in the relations between sleep patterns, temperament and self-regulation in infants and preschoolers.
Noam Oz
M.A. Student
Noam Oz received her B.A in Psychology from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben Gurion University. Her research examines the relationship between sleep arrangements and parent-infant sleep quality.
e-mail: noamoz78@gmail.com
Yael Rothschild
M.A. Student
Yael Rothschild, received her B.A in psychology from the Michlala Haredit (via Ben-Gurion University) and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. Her research examines differences between suicidal and non-suicidal depressed young adults in relation to sleep and self-criticism.
e-mail: rothyael@bgu.ac.il
Ruth Agroskin-Gusarov
M.A. Student
Ruth Agroskin-Gusarov, received her B.A in Psychology from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben Gurion University. Her research examines the links between maternal sleep, sleepiness and fatigue and maternal ability to sustain Emotional Availability (EA) across a mother–infant interaction.
Shani Zeldman
M.A. Student
Shani Zeldman received her B.A in Psychology from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. Her research examines the relationship between paternal involvement and mother-infant sleep.
Former Students
Ella Volkovich, Ph.D.
Dana Sinai, M.A.
Yasmin Bauminger, M.A.
Hila Oren, M.A.
Roni Schneider, M.A.
Gili Shrieber, M.A.
Avigail Palgi-Hecker, M.A.
Mor Bar, M.A.
Dana Elberg, M.A.
Shir Mayan, M.A.
Yosef Fertouk, M.A.
Uriel Harel Schuman, M.A.
Professor Liat Tikotzky
Ph.D., Head of Lab
Liat Tikotzky is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. She is a licensed clinical psychologist with specialized training and expertise in infant, child, and parent sleep. Her research broadly explores the interplay between parenting and sleep.
Prof. Tikotzky’s work has examined the longitudinal relationships between parental sleep-related behaviors and cognitions and the development of infant sleep patterns, as well as the role of fathers’ involvement in caregiving and infant sleep. She has led longitudinal studies—funded by the Israel Science Foundation—on the associations between maternal emotional distress and infant sleep development. Her ongoing research also investigates the links between parental sleep disturbances and the parent-infant relationship. Currently, she is the principal investigator of a large randomized controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of infant sleep interventions.
e-mail: liatti@bgu.ac.il
Amit Samet
Ph.D. Student
Amit Samet is a PhD student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. She received her B.A in psychology and brain and cognition science and her M.A in clinical psychology from BGU. She is interested in behavioral sleep interventions for infants with sleeping problems and parental factors that impact treatment outcomes.
e-mail: amitsamet114@gmail.com
Yotam Schori
M.A. Student
Yotam Schori received his B.A in Behavioral Sciences from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben Gurion University. He focuses on investigating the associations between sleep and physiological linkage among couples.
Malka Leviton
M.A. Student
Malka Leviton received her B.A in Psychology from Hebrew University and is currently an M.A student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. Her research examines the role of parental guilt in sleep interventions for infants.
e-mail: malka.leviton@gmail.com
Avigail Langer
M.A. Student
Avigail Langer received her BSc in Psychobiology from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A. student in clinical psychology at Ben-Gurion University. Her research examines the role of parental cognitions related to infant sleep, in the treatment of infant insomnia.
Maayan Farhana
M.A. Student
Maayan Farhana received her B.Sc in Psychology and Life sciences from Ben-Gurion University and is currently an M.A student in developmental Psychology at Ben-Gurion University. Her research examines the role of marital satisfaction and coparenting in the effectiveness of infant insomnia treatment
Shahar Zimen
M.A. Student
Shachar Zimen received her B.A. in Psychology and Biology at the Sagol School of neuroscience in Tel Aviv University. Her research examines the relationship between sleep quality and romantic relationships. Specifically, whether poor sleep affects partners ability to engage in Emotion Focused Therapy for Couples.
e-mail: zimen@post.bgu.ac.il
Former Students
Ella Volkovich, Ph.D.
Hamutal Ben-Zion, Ph.D.
Dar Ran-Peled, Ph.D.
Omer Finkelstein, Ph.D.
Dana Sinai, M.A.
Yasmin Bauminger, M.A.
Hila Oren, M.A.
Roni Schneider, M.A.
Gili Shrieber, M.A.
Avigail Palgi-Hecker, M.A.
Mor Bar, M.A.
Dana Elberg, M.A.
Shir Mayan, M.A.
Yosef Fertouk, M.A.
Uriel Harel Schuman, M.A.
Noam Oz, M.A.
Yael Rothschild, M.A.
Ruth Agroskin-Gusarov, M.A.
Shani Zeldman, M.A.
Gal Ferder, M.A.
Avel Horwitz, Ph.D.
Yael Porat-Zaiger, Ph.D.
Alona Molcho-Haimovich, Ph.D.
Ofek Matzliach, M.A.
Adva Assulin, M.A.