Dr. Kathleen Munley

Biography

Kathleen Munley is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Alberta. Her research interests encompass Seasonal Social Neuroendocrinology, focusing on the social seasonal regulation of behavioral plasticity and dominance hierarchies in African Neotropical cichlid fishes. She employs a comparative framework, utilizing genetic, molecular, endocrine, behavioral tools, transcriptomics, neuroanatomy, and metabolomics to address her research questions. Munley's academic journey includes a B.S. in Marine Biology and a B.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Miami, followed by a Ph.D. in Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior from Indiana University. She has conducted research on the physiological responses of aquatic animals to environmental stressors, such as lead exposure and salinity stress tolerance. Munley completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she studied the neural and molecular control of social status in African cichlid fish. She began her position at the University of Alberta in July 2025 and is actively seeking graduate students to join her lab in Fall 2026.

Research Interests

Experience

Courses