The Living Lab has a variety of ongoing studies such as:
Thinking about ourselves in the future (3-7 years) In an ongoing series of studies we’re examining how children think about the future and the past. For example, one of our studies examines how children reason about their future and past preferences. In this study, we ask children to identify the kinds of things they like now (e.g., certain toys and foods) and how these “likes” or preferences may have differed in the past and will differ in the future. Another aspect of future thought that we’re studying is saving. In these studies we’re interested in learning more about the strategies that children use to help them save.
The effect of producing speech during learning (2-8 years) When a child learns a new word, does it help if the child says the word aloud? Many of us will answer, 'Yes, of course!' But the picture is far from simple and not straightforward. While producing words has shown to benefit children's learning, our work shows that sometimes production can also disrupt learning. Our current studies are exploring the role of speech production in language learning.
Observing how babies listen and respond to spoken language (3-30 months) We are interested in understanding the development of infants' attention to, and preference for, infant-directed speech, or baby talk - the sing-song manner in which adults talk to babies. Specifically, we are interested in comparing monolingual and bilingual babies as past research has been limited to a particular kind of linguistic (and cultural) experience: monolingual babies. We are also exploring the development of bilingual infants' attention to the eye gaze of adults in the context of word learning.
Please note that the child needs to be accompanied by a legal guardian to participate in a study.
Check out the calendar below to know which studies are being conducted when you come visit the CSTM.
*Please note that the schedule is subject to last minute changes. Please communicate with us directly by email ([email protected]) or telephone (613) 235-7053, ext. 2107, if you want to ensure that your child will be able to participate.