Psychology Department
University of Northern British Columbia
3333 University Way
Prince George, BC, Canada V2N 4Z9

Office phone: (250) 960-6657
Lab phone: (250) 960-6062
Fax: (250) 960-5744
E-mail: owenw@unbc.ca

Academic Background:

1991-1995: B.Sc. Honours (Augustana University College, Dr. T. Parker and Dr. P. Marentette)

1997-1999: M.A. (University of Saskatchewan, Dr. Ron Borowsky)

1999-2002: Ph.D. (University of Saskatchewan, Dr. Ron Borowsky)

2002-now: Assistant Professor (University of Northern British Columbia)

Fall 2006 Courses: More details can be found on the course web sites

Psychology 315: Research Analysis and Design I

: Text - Aron, Aron, & Coup's Statistics for Psychology (4th edition) along with the study guide/lab manual

 

Winter 2007 Courses:

Psychology 316: Research Analysis and Design II

: Text - Aron, Aron, & Coup's Statistics for Psychology (4th edition) along with the study guide/lab manual

Psychology 330: INTRODUCTION TO COGNITION

: Text - Gregory L. Robinson-Riegler & Bridget Robinson-Riegler's Cognitive Psychology: Applying the Science of the Mind (4th edition)

Graduate Students:

Interested in joining this lab?? Please refer to the following document:

Graduate Student Philosophy

Current Students:

N. Burnett - undergraduate research assistant

J. Scammel - undergraduate research assistant

H. Samadi - undergraduate research assistant

L. Aguilera - Ph.D. Graduate Student

M. Hewlett - Ph.D. Graduate Student

Former Students:

T. Taggart - undergraduate research assistant; Graduate student in the School of Environmental Planning at UNBC

R. Yates - undergraduate research assistant; SSHRC funded graduate student now studying at UVIC

K. Playford - undergraduate research assistant; SSHRC funded graduate student who completed her MA at UGuelph

Selected Publications:

2006

Siakaluk, P.D., Pexman, P.M., Sears, C.R., & Owen, W.J. (in press). Multiple meanings are not necessarily a disadvantage in semantic processing: Evidence from homophone effects in semantic categorization. Language and Cognitive Processes.

Borowsky, R., Cummine, J., Owen, W.J., Friesen, C.K., Shih, F., & Sarty, G.E. (in press). FMRI of Ventral and Dorsal Processing Streams in Basic Reading Processes: Independence of Lexical and Sub-lexical Phonology, and Insular Sensitivity to Sub-lexical Spelling-to-Sound Mappings. Brain Topography: Journal of Functional Neurophysiology.

2005

Borowsky, R., Owen, W.J., Wile, T.L., Friesen, C.K., Phillips, J.L., & Sarty, G.E. (2005). Neuroimaging of language processes: FMRI of silent and overt lexical processing and the promise multiple process imaging in single brain studies. Canadian Association of Radiology Journal, 56, 204-213.

2004

Owen, W.J., & Borowsky, R., & Sarty, G.E. (2004). FMRI of two measures of phonological processing in visual word recognition: Ecological validity matters. Brain & Language, 90, 40-46.

Cited by:

Price, C.J. & Mechelli, A. (2005). Reading and reading disturbance. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 15, 231-238.

Libben, G. & Jarema, G. (2004). Concepts and questions concerning morphological processing. Brain & Language, 90, 2-8.

2003

Owen, W.J., & Borowsky, R. (2003). Examining the interactivity of lexical orthographic and phonological processing. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 57, 290-303.

2002

Borowsky, R., Owen, W.J., & Masson, M.E.J. (2002). Reevaluating the diagnostics for phonological lexical access: When the pseudohomophone naming advantage becomes a disadvantage. Memory & Cognition, 30, 969-987.

Cited by:

Kinoshita S., Lupker S.J., Rastle K. (2005). Modulation of regularity and lexicality effects in reading aloud. Memory & Cognition, 32, 1255-1264.

McDougall, P., Borowsky, R., Mackinnon, G.E., & Hymel, S. (2005). Process dissociation of sight vocabulary and phonetic decoding: A new perspective on surface and phonological dyslexias. Brain and Language, 92, 185- 203.

Owen, Borowsky, & Sarty (2004)

Rodd, J.M. (2004). The effect of semantic ambiguity on reading aloud: A twist in the tale. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 11, 440-445.

Wile, T. & Borowsky, R. (2004). What does rapid automatized naming measure? A new RAN task compared to naming and lexical decision. Brain & Language, 90, 47-62.

Kinoshita, S. & Lupker, S.J. (2003). Priming and attentional control of lexical and sublexical pathways in naming: A reevaluation. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 29, 405-415.

Owen & Borowsky (2003)

Yates, Locker, & Simpson (2003). Semantic and phonological influences on the processing of words and pseudohomophones. Memory & Cognition, 31, 856-866.

Borowsky, R., Owen, W.J., & Sarty, G.E. (2002). The role of the left hemisphere in motor control of touch: A functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis. Brain & Cognition, 49, 96-101.

Cited by:

Brand, Bossema, Ommen, Moll, & Ackerstaff (2004). Left or right carotid endarterectomy in patients with atherosclerotic disease: Ipsilateral effects on cognition?
Brain & Cognition, 54, 117-123.

Owen, Borowsky, & Sarty (2004)

Pillay S.S., Rogowska J., Kanayama G., Jon D.I., Gruber S., Simpson N., Cherayil M., Pope H.G., Yurgelun-Todd D.A. (2004). Neurophysiology of motor function following cannabis discontinuation in chronic cannabis smokers: an fMRI study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 76, 261-271.

1999

Borowsky, R., Owen, W.J., & Fonos, N. (1999). Reading speech and hearing print: Constraining models of visual word recognition by exploring connections with speech perception. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 53, 294-305.

Cited by:

Hennessey J.E., Bell T.S., Kwortnik R.J. (2005). Lexical interference in semantic processing of simple words: Implications for brand names. Psychology & Marketing, 22, 51-69.

McDougall, P., Borowsky, R., Mackinnon, G.E., & Hymel, S. (2005). Process dissociation of sight vocabulary and phonetic decoding: A new perspective on surface and phonological dyslexias. Brain and Language, 92, 185- 203.

Wile, T. & Borowsky, R. (2004). What does rapid automatized naming measure? A new RAN task compared to naming and lexical decision. Brain & Language, 90, 47-62.

Borowsky, Owen, & Masson (2003)

Owen & Borowsky (2003)

Ziegler, Muneaux, & Grainger (2003). Neighborhood effects in auditory word recognition: Phonological competition and orthographic facilitation. Journal of Memory and Language, 48, 779-793.

Selected Submissions for Publication:

Burnett, A.N., Fugelsang, J.A., Owen, W.J., & Siakaluk, P.D. (Under Review). The influence of specificity on causal reasoning. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science.

Siakaluk, P.D., Pexman, P.M., Aguilera, L., Owen, W.J., & Sears, C.R. (Under Review). Evidence for the activation of sensorimotor information during visual word recognition: The body-object interaction effect. Cognition.

Owen, W.J., Blake, L., & Borowsky, R. (Under Review). The appropriateness of word frequency and orthographic length effects as indices of sight vocabulary and phonetic decoding. Reading and Writing.

Owen, W.J., & Borowsky, R., Cummine, J. & Sarty, G.E. (in preparation). A functional MRI analysis of frequency and lexicality effects for exception word and pseudohomophone reading.