We are proud to be part of the:
The University of British Columbia
Vancouver campus
Infant Studies Centre: Research on Infant Language Development
Directed by Dr. Janet F. Werker, we study language acquisition and speech perception in infants newborn to two years old.
Impact of COVID-19 on Language and Literacy in Canada
Featuring contributions from Dr. Janet F. Werker, the Royal Society of Canada has recently released a series of essays on how COVID-19 has impacted language development.
Dr. Werker’s ‘Wonder Kids’ Talk Available Online
Dr. Werker kicks off the first 'Wonder Kids' talk of 2021 with a discussion about babies growing up learning more than one language.
Face-Mask Use & Language Development: Reasons to Worry?
Dr. Janet F. Werker's discusses common concerns surrounding the impacts of facemasks in a new opinion piece.
Psychology Research During the Pandemic
Read a neat new article by Dr. Werker: 'Psychology research during the pandemic: The upside of being online' in the Globe and Mail!
Dr. Werker Elected Member of the National Academy of Sciences!
Election to the NAS is one of the highest honours a scientist can receive; please join us in congratulating Dr. Werker!
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR)
Our research is partly funded by CIFAR, a Canadian-based organization that brings together researchers from across disciplines to address science and humanity’s most important questions.
The Beginnings of Language Acquisition
Language acquisition begins long before infants speak their first word... in fact, it begins before they are even born! Read More
Jazon Izadi from our lab discusses receiving the PIE Award and the barriers faced in psychological research.
We’re excited to share an insightful interview with Jazon Izadi from our lab, where he discusses his receipt of the PIE Award and explores some of the key barriers in psychological research. Check out the full conversation here: https://psych.ubc.ca/news/pie-fund-student-research-izadi/
Dr. Helen Shiyang Lu Joins Our Centre as Postdoctoral Fellow!
Dr. Helen Shiyang Lu has joined the Infant Studies Center and has been awarded the Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellowship!
Congratulations to Dr. Xin Sun!
Dr. Xin Sun, as post-doctoral fellow at the Infant Studies Centre, has been awarded the prestigious Banting Fellowship Award !
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Face-Mask Use & Language Development: Reasons to Worry?
Dr. Janet F. Werker's discusses common concerns surrounding the impacts of facemasks in a new opinion piece.
Psychology Research During the Pandemic
Read a neat new article by Dr. Werker: 'Psychology research during the pandemic: The upside of being online' in the Globe and Mail!
Our ‘Brite’ Word-Learning Study Featured
Dr. Drew Weatherhead and Dr. Maria Arredondo's study has been featured by the UBC Department of Psychology.
Click here for more Media
Dr. Janet F. Werker is Director of the UBC Infant Studies Centre. She is University Killam Professor and Canada Research Chair in Psychology, and is internationally known for her research investigating the perceptual foundations of language acquisition in infancy. You may read more about Dr. Werker and her accomplishments in her full bio. Dr. Werker co-founded and co-directs the UBC Language Sciences; this initiative connects scholars, researchers, and teachers to create collaborations resulting in ground-breaking research. She is also Project Director of an international SSHRC Partnership Grant (bringing together scholars, industry, and community) entitled Ensuring Full Literacy in a Multicultural and Digital World.
Currently, we are running online and in-person studies for infants (5 to 24 months) and children (3 to 14 years).
We are 1 of 6 research centres that make up the Early Development Research Group at UBC: sign-up here, and we will notify you each time your family is eligible to participate in a study!