Research
I study adolescent social development and mental health with a focus on social cognition (i.e., how youth understand themselves and others) as a transdiagnostic mechanism of internalizing psychopathology. I am particularly interested in these processes among socially marginalized youth (e.g., low-status, low-income, and Latine adolescents).
To investigate these questions, I integrate across methods (behavioral, self-report, and neural) and scales (from years-long development to momentary dynamics). My studies include experimental paradigms, longitudinal and intensive longitudinal designs, task-based fMRI, and structural equation modeling within both frequentist and Bayesian frameworks. My long-term goal is to inform interventions and policies that decrease internalizing difficulties and promote well-being among young people.
Check out my recent publication in Trends in Cognitive Sciences: Multidimensional social cognitive profiles: Implications for adolescent internalizing psychopathology!
Free access through Aug 28, 2026: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1nPcy4sIRvapJT
Mentalizing
PUBLICATIONS
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Allen, N. B., Pfeifer, J. H. Multidimensional social cognitive profiles: Implications for adolescent internalizing psychopathology. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. Free access through Aug 28, 2026: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1nPcy4sIRvapJT
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Barendse, M. E. A., Chavez, S. J., Flournoy, J. C., Cheng, T. W., Cosme, D., Byrne, M. L., Allen, N. B., & Pfeifer, J. H. (2025). A longitudinal neuroimaging study of adolescent girls’ mentalizing and perspective-taking tendencies. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2025.101526
Stendel, M. S., Guthrie, T., Guazzelli Williamson, V., Chavez, R. S. (2024). Self-esteem modulates the brain-to-brain similarity of the representation of the self in the brains of others. Nature Communications Psychology. DOI: 10.1038/s44271-024-00148-8
Guazzelli Williamson, V., & Mills, K. L. (2022). Mentalizing strategies for navigating the social world in adolescence. Infant and Child Development, DOI: 10.1002/icd.2374
Internalizing
PUBLICATIONS
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Allen, N. B., Pfeifer, J. H. Multidimensional social cognitive profiles: Implications for adolescent internalizing. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. Free access through Aug 28, 2026: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1nPcy4sIRvapJT
Guazzelli Williamson, V., & Mills, K. L. (2022). Mentalizing strategies for navigating the social world in adolescence. Infant and Child Development, DOI: 10.1002/icd.2374
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Berger, E., Barendse, M. E. A., Pfeifer, J. H., Dahl, R., Magis-Weinberg, L. (2022). Socio-ecological resilience relates to lower internalizing symptoms among adolescents during the strictest period of COVID-19 lockdown in Perú. Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology. DOI: 10.1007/s10802-022-00928-y.
Barendse, M. E. A., Byrne, M. L., Flournoy, J. C., McNeilly, E., Guazzelli Williamson, V., Barrett, A., Chavez, S. J., Shirtcliff, E. A., Allen, N. B., Pfeifer, J. H. (2022). Multi-method assessment of pubertal timing and associations with internalizing psychopathology in early adolescent girls. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. DOI: 10.1037/abn0000721
Status
PUBLICATIONS
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Lee, A., Miller, D., Huo, T., Dulin, A., Maner, J. K. & Cardel, M. I. (2021). Psychological resilience, experimentally manipulated social status, and dietary intake among adolescents. Nutrients. DOI: 10.3390/nu13030806
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Dilip, A., Dillard, J. R., Morgan-Daniel, J., Lee, A. M., & Cardel, M. I. (2021). The Influence of socioeconomic status on snacking and weight among adolescents: A scoping review. Nutrients. DOI: 10.3390/nu12010167
Latino/a & Hispanic Youth in the US and Perú
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Psychological resilience, experimentally manipulated social status, and dietary intake among adolescents. Poster. PDF.
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Exploring the moderating role of resilience in change in depressive and anxious symptomatology during the COVID-19 quarantine among Peruvian adolescents. Preprint. Preregistration.
PUBLICATIONS
Pastor-Ruiz, Y., Hihara, S., Martínez-Iñigo, D., Pérez-Torres, V., Guazzelli Williamson, V., Erreygers, S., Magis-Weinberg, L., Iwasa, Y. (2024). Online prosocial behavior during adolescence in Belgium, Japan, Peru, and Spain: Cross-national and gender invariance and differences in four countries. Journal of Children and Media. DOI: 10.1080/17482798.2024.2404525
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Berger, E., Barendse, M. E. A., Pfeifer, J. H., Dahl, R., Magis-Weinberg, L. (2022). Socio-ecological resilience relates to lower internalizing symptoms among adolescents during the strictest period of COVID-19 lockdown in Perú. Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology. DOI: 10.1007/s10802-022-00928-y.
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Lee, A., Miller, D., Huo, T., Dulin, A., Maner, J. K. & Cardel, M. I. (2021). Psychological resilience, experimentally manipulated social status, and dietary intake among adolescents. Nutrients. DOI: 10.3390/nu13030806
Montoya-Williams, D., Guazzelli Williamson, V., Cardel, M. I., Fuentes-Afflick, E., Moldonado-Molina, M., Thompson, L. (2021). The Hispanic/Latinx perinatal paradox in the United States: A scoping review and recommendations to guide future research. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. DOI: 10.1007/s10903-020-01117-z
Social Brain Function
PUBLICATIONS
Guazzelli Williamson, V., Barendse, M. E. A., Chavez, S. J., Flournoy, J. C., Cheng, T. W., Cosme, D., Byrne, M. L., Allen, N. B., & Pfeifer, J. H. (2025). A longitudinal neuroimaging study of adolescent girls’ mentalizing and perspective-taking tendencies. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2025.101526
Stendel, M. S., Guthrie, T., Guazzelli Williamson, V., Chavez, R. S. (2024). Self-esteem modulates the brain-to-brain similarity of the representation of the self in the brains of others. Nature Communications Psychology. DOI: 10.1038/s44271-024-00148-8