Explore projects in Atypical Development!
These projects focus on how structural and functional differences in the brain contribute to variations in cognitive, emotional, and behavioral development. These studies investigate neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, learning disabilities, and other atypical trajectories that emerge in infancy, childhood, or adolescence. Using tools like MRI, EEG, and behavioral assessments, researchers examine how brain development in these populations differs from typical patterns in areas such as connectivity, plasticity, and regional activation. Projects often aim to identify early markers of atypical development, understand underlying mechanisms, and inform interventions that support adaptive functioning and well-being across the lifespan.
“Brain – Lateral Left” by Mike Birkhead is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International via Wikimedia Commons
- Dual Speech Coordination: fMRI Investigations of a New Neuroarchitectural Model of Speech ProductionProject Abstract/Summary Speech is a universal form of human communication, and yet millions of Americans, young and old, have difficulties in producing speech, affecting their well-being and livelihood. Speech impairment is a common brain-related problem that can be caused by a wide range of genetic, injury-related, or degenerative brain problems. Helping people with such impairments can be difficult because speech is an incredibly complicated brain ability, often making it hard to pinpoint the source of the problem so that it… Read more: Dual Speech Coordination: fMRI Investigations of a New Neuroarchitectural Model of Speech Production
- CAREER: Understanding Early Language: Evidence from Blind Infants & Deaf InfantsProject Abstract/Summary Language learning is a robust process that relies on a child’s capacity for learning from the sights, sounds, and experiences in the environment. However, for the roughly 200,000 young children in the US with a visual or hearing disability, language learning proceeds differently, and there are basic questions about the roles of hearing and seeing in language development for which we have no answers. Discovering answers to these questions is critical for supporting individuals with hearing or vision… Read more: CAREER: Understanding Early Language: Evidence from Blind Infants & Deaf Infants