Navin Kaushal, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the Department of Health Sciences at the School of Health & Human Sciences. His primary research focus includes using theory-based approaches to understand determinants of engaging in regular physical activity, and its related health outcomes.
Kaushal holds a BHSc joint honors degree in health sciences and psychology from Western University. He then pursued his master’s degree on the east coast at Memorial University where he graduated with an MSc (distinction) in kinesiology (sport psychology). He then moved to the west coast, where he completed his Ph.D. in behavioral medicine at the University of Victoria. Kaushal then pursued his postdoctoral fellowship in preventive medicine at the University of Montreal and the Montreal Heart Institute.
Kaushal’s research streams include investigating constructs that facilitate an active lifestyle, and how behavior change predicts proximal (e.g., health-related quality of life) and distal (e.g., cognitive performance and cardiovascular parameters) outcomes. His work complements existing areas of research in the department, such as healthy aging, and extends the investigation to community-based contexts. His work also brings novel investigation approaches to the department, such as understanding how the synergy of conscious (e.g., motivation) and automatic (e.g., habit) processes predict behavioral maintenance.
Kaushal has published as a primary author in some of the leading journals in his discipline and has a successful record of acquiring external funding. He is the first researcher to scientifically calculate and publish the minimal time, behavioral and psychological requirements to successfully establish an exercise habit. His findings have received international attention across various media sources such as the Canadian Psychological Association, Psychology Today, and the Wall Street Journal. He also enjoys translating his findings to relevant communities such as individuals affected by heart disease, gym/recreation centers, and the Alzheimer’s Society. Please contact him if you are interested in pursuing graduate studies or research opportunities under his supervision.
