Caitlyn Marie Trevor
UX Researcher | Background in Psychology | Music Perception Specialist
As a mixed methods researcher with advanced programming and analysis skills, I design and direct efficient, comprehensive studies that pinpoint customer needs and pain-points.
While studying for a Bachelors degree in music, I discovered music cognition and fell in love with the process of conducting research. I then garnered eight years of research experience, first as a PhD student, then working as a Postdoctoral Researcher in a neuroscience lab in Switzerland, and finally, by completing a Professional Certificate in User Research.
Through years of managing multiple research project simultaneously, I’ve developed expertise in study design, participant recruitment, data collection, data analysis, and generating engaging final reports. Having given 18 international conference presentations and published 10 peer-reviewed academic journal articles, I am practiced at communicating results as compelling, evidence-based narratives concluding with clear, impactful next-steps.
My background in research and teaching has helped me transition seamlessly into the User Research field. I bring expertise in a breadth of UX methods including usability tests & interviews. My mission is to deeply understand people so that I can champion their needs and advocate for user-centered product development.
When I’m not interviewing users, you can find me watching the latest arthouse horror film or exploring the botanical gardens with my daughter.
Peer-reviewed Journal Articles
Trevor, C., Fruehholz, S. (2024). Music as an evolved tool for socio-affective fiction. Emotion Review, 16(3), 180-194. (html) (pdf)
Trost, W., Trevor, C., Fernandez, N., Steiner, F., & Fruehholz, S. (2024). Live music stimulates the affective brain and emotionally entrains listeners in realtime. PNAS, 120(10), e2316306121. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C., Renner, M., & Fruehholz, S. (2023). Acoustic and structural differences between musically portrayed subtypes of fear. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 153(1), 384-399. (html) (pdf)
Skjegstad, C. L., Trevor, C., Swanborough, H., Roswandowitz, C., Mokros, A., Habermeyer, E., & Fruehholz, S. (2022). Psychopathic and autistic traits differentially influence the neural mechanisms of social cognition from communication signals. Translational Psychiatry, 12, 494. (html)
Trevor, C., Devaney, J., & Huron, D. (2022). Musicians can reliably discriminate between string register locations on the violoncello. Music Perception, 40(1), 27-38. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Yackley A. (2021). Aural skills for upper position playing on low strings. American String Teacher, 71(4), 45-50. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C., Arnal, L., & Fruehholz, S. (2020). Terrifying film music mimics alarming acoustic feature of human screams. JASA Express Letters, 147(6), EL540-EL545. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Huron, D. (2018). Animated performance: 'Better' music means larger movements. Music Theory Online, 24(4), 6. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Huron, D. (2018). Are humoresques humorous? On the similarity between laughter and staccato. Empirical Musicology Review, 13(1–2), 66–77. (html) (pdf)
Huron, D. & Trevor C. (2016). Are stopped strings preferred in sad music? Empirical Musicology Review, 11(2), 261–269. (html) (pdf)
Conference Proceeding Articles
Trevor, C., Arnal, L., & Fruehholz, S. (2020). Scary music mimics alarming acoustic feature of human screams. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Timbre (Timbre 2020), Thessaloniki (online), Greece, 14–16. (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Huron, D. (2016). Animated performance: ‘better’ music means larger movements. Proceedings for the International Conference for Music Perception and Cognition, San Francisco, California, USA, 420–423. (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Huron, D. (2016). Are stopped strings preferred in sad music? Proceedings for the International Conference for Music Perception and Cognition, San Francisco, California, USA, 578–581. (pdf)
Trevor, C. & Plazak J. (2016). Imprinting emotion on music: transferring affective information from sight to sound. Proceedings for the International Conference for Music Perception and Cognition, San Francisco, California, USA, 265–268. (pdf)
Non-peer-reviewed Publications
Trevor, C. & Fruehholz, S. (2021). The evolutionary benefit of less-credible affective musical signals for emotion induction during storytelling. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 44, E118. doi:10.1017/S0140525X20001004. (html)
Trevor, C. (2020). Methods of Measuring Musical Tension: Commentary on Teo (2020). Empirical Musicology Review, 15(1–2), 105-107. (html) (pdf)
Trevor, C. (2019, Spring/Summer). Methodological Considerations For Choreomusicology Influenced by Music Cognition. SEM Student News, 15(1), 14–17. (pdf)
Book Review
Trevor, C. (2021). Review of the book Music, Analysis, and the Body: Experiments, Explorations, and Embodiments, edited by N. Reyland & R. Thumpston. Music Theory Spectrum, 43(1), 172-180. (html) (pdf)
Research In Progress
Does scary music mimic biological voice signals of threat? (preregistration)