Research Department of Developmental Science

Mission Statement

The Developmental Science Department is a unique interdisciplinary group, made up of developmental scientists and clinicians in: developmental experimental psychology, neuropsychology, psycholinguistics, cognitive neuroscience, developmental disorders and speech and language pathology, which aims to advance fundamental understanding of human development and translate these advances into clinical and educational domains. Its research includes vision and visual cognition, cognitive understanding and learning, speech processing and language, ranging from early infancy through childhood, bridging normal development with developmental disorders of vision, cognition and language There are special laboratories for infant testing, including EEG and behavioural methods. It benefits from close contact with work in neighbouring research departments on cognitive neuroscience, language, cognition, child neurology and behaviour. Clinical applications include studies of the development of very premature infants, children with autism spectrum disorder, Downs Syndrome, Williams Syndrome, dyslexia, specific language impairments, attentional disorders, hearing impairments, and therapeutic interventions with these groups. Work is supported by grants from MRC (including Visual Development Unit), ESRC, Nuffield Foundation. Members have many international links with developmental scientists in Europe, USA, China and Japan.

Members of the DSD have collaborative links with researchers in other UCL departments and faculties, and with the University College Hospital,
Institute of Child Health and Institute of Ophthalmology.

Current Research Projects

• Normal and Abnormal Visual Brain Development: (sensory/perceptual/cognitive/spatial vision including Visual Attention)
  Normal infants and children, Williams Syndrome/Downs Syndrome/perinatal brain disorders/
  visual disorders /very Premature/low birth weight - Visual Development Unit
  Funded: Medical Research Council, ESRC, Williams Syndrome Foundation
  Researchers:Jan Atkinson, Oliver Braddick (UCL Visiting Professor from Oxford), John Wattam-Bell,
  Shirley Anker, Dee Birtles, Kate Breckenridge
  
  
• Development of Language and Mathematical Skills
  Funded: Nuffield Foundation
  Researchers: Chris Donlan , Elizabeth Newton
  
  
• Psycholinguistic Assessment and Intervention for Deaf Children: 2003-2008.
  Researchers: Rachel Rees
  
  
• Development of the child's understanding of causality
  Researcher: Anne Schlotmann
  
  
• Assessment and Intervention for children with speech production difficulties
  
  
• Development of social communication skills, perception and attentional abilities in children
  with autism spectrum disorder
  Researchers: John Swettenham, Elizabeth Milne, Anna Remington
  
  
• Perception, language and communication in Deaf Children
  Funded: ESRC.
  Researchers: Tanya Denmark and John Swettenham
  
  
• Language development in Deaf Children
  Funded: British Academy
  Researchers: Merle Mahon, Juliette Corrin, and Theo Marinis
  
  

Main Contacts

Role	Person	Email
Head of Research Department, Director of Visual Development Unit (VDU)	Jan Atkinson	j.atkinson@ucl.ac.uk/ vdu@psychol.ucl.ac.uk
Graduate Tutors	John Swettenham John Wattam-Bell	j.swettenham@ucl.ac.uk j.wattam-bell@ucl.ac.uk

See our staff & student list for a complete list of people in the department.