Principal Investigator

Assistant Professor | Department of Psychology | The University of Hong Kong
HKU webpage

Dr. Wai Sze Chan received her PhD in Clinical Psychological Science from the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Indiana University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship specializing in behavioral sleep medicine at the University of Missouri. Prior to joining HKU, she was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College and a licensed practicing clinical psychologist in the state of New Hampshire, USA.

Dr. Chan is broadly interested in the effects of sleep on self-regulation and the subsequent impact on health behavior and emotional regulation. Her clinical line of research focuses on evaluating how a therapy work and how to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of a therapy. Specifically, she evaluates how one can optimize the efficacy of sleep interventions for individuals with medical and psychiatric comorbidities. Her mechanistic research focuses on unraveling the behavioral and psychological mechanisms by which parameters of sleep (duration, quality, variability) and circadian rhythms affect the regulation of eating and weight management.

Research Assistant

Postgraduate Students

Hi, I am Sandy, a PhD student under the supervison of Dr. Wai Sze Chan. I am working on a sleep and eating research study with Dr. Chan. I am interested in the effects of sleep on self-regulation.

Ng, Sin Ying (Albe)

I am Albe, a PhD student under the supervision of Dr. Wai Sze Chan. I received my bachelor’s degree in the Department of Psychology at HKU. I am interested in the psychopathology of complex trauma and the resilience factors facilitating posttraumatic growth. My research project focuses on the role of sleep disturbance in the relationship between child abuse and emotional and behavioural adjustment. I aspire to equip and empower caregivers with skills to take care of emotionally disturbed children so that healing can take place in everyday life, beyond the therapy room.

Hi, I am Kate. I received my master’s degree at University College London three years ago. I am currently a second year PhD student under the supervision of Dr. Wai Sze Chan. My research interests lie primarily in the area of mental disorders, sleep and women’s health. The central aim of my dissertation is to advance our understanding about the relationship between disturbed sleep and depression among perinatal women. Studying the shared mechanisms underlying these two disorders could be the key to develop more effective interventions and prevention strategies for women who need help. I sincerely hope that my study may provide some help for future researchers and my ultimate goal is to improve quality of life and mental health outcomes for women in need.

Tsui Tsz Ching, (Helen)

I am Helen and I’m doing my Mphil degree under Dr. Chan’s supervision. I received my bachelor’s degree in psychology at HKU. I am interested in studying sleep disorders, emotion regulation and mood disorders. My research project investigates the role of emotion regulation in the association between insomnia and depression. I enjoy doing research to investigate the mechanisms of sleep and mood disorders to improve the interventions to help those who are emotionally disturbed.

MSocSc CP Student

Undergraduate Thesis Student

Undergraduate and Postgraduate Research Interns