Come study babies in our lab!

Thank you for your interest in the Early Social Cognition Laboratory.

APPLY to be an undergraduate research student.

Each semester, several undergraduate students earn course credit working in the lab. They are a vital part of our research, running experimental sessions, and coding and analyzing behavioral data. At the same time, they gain invaluable experience and insight into the process of conducting research.

As an undergraduate research student, this is what you can expect:

Ten hours of work in the lab

This commitment includes the time you spend reading, coding tapes, and attending the lab meetings. There is also a two-credit-hour option with a seven-hour lab commitment. Students may repeat the course over several semesters for additional experience and credit. Advanced students may have the opportunity to conduct research as part of the Department of Psychology's Distinguished Majors Program.

A weekly meeting with the Early Social Cognition Lab team

Our weekly meetings are a chance to get to know the others in the lab and exchange notes on our individual progress. We gain an understanding of how each person's work fits into the overall project and have a chance to raise specific questions about our work. We also talk about practical aspects of research design in developmental psychology.

Work with advanced graduate students

Each research project in the lab is primarily identified with one of the graduate students. Over the course of the semester, undergraduate assistants will have the opportunity to work closely with one student and also to have an overview of all the research projects associated with the Early Social Cognition Lab.

Experience with one or more behavioral coding schemes

We videotape short experimental sessions with our participants, then code for specific behaviors of interest. Each student becomes a specialist in at least one coding scheme and is exposed to several others over the course of a semester.

Learn new computer software/hardware

We gather data on motion and voice using sophisticated electronic equipment. Over the course of the research assistantship, students have the opportunity to work with this equipment. Students also have the opportunity to learn nonlinear video editing while converting digital video tape to DVD format for coding.

Meeting some of the cutest babies in town

Our participants are young children, usually coming into the lab with their mothers. While most of the work in our lab is done using recordings of these participants, our research students occasionally have the opportunity to play with young children who are waiting while their older or younger siblings participate.

Apply to work in the Early Social Cognition Laboratory