Our members are currently running and/or participating in a number of research projects that explore different aspects of language acquisition, processing and disorders. Below you can find information on some of these projects and how you can contribute by participating.

• The Babylab Utrecht conducts research on language development. You can get information on all the ongoing projects and learn how you and your kid(s) can participate here (in Dutch).
• The SoundStart project explores prosodic development from prenatal stages to the third year of life. It focuses on two key aspects: Prosodic Phrasing, breaking speech into rhythmic and melodic units, and Prosodic Form-Meaning Mappings, linking intonation patterns with meanings. Investigating Biologically Motivated Mechanisms, Input-Based Learning in the Auditory Modality, and the role of the Visual Modality, the project aims to unveil how infants learn the aspects of their native language’s melody and rhythm.
• The One plus one is more than two study aims to determine why bilingual children (with typical language development and with DLD) often have advantages over their monolingual peers in learning English as a foreign language at school.
• The 22q11.2 deletion syndrome study conducts research on the language profile of young children and adolescents with 22q11DS, a relatively common genetic syndrome with large phenotypical variation.
• The ePODIUM project examines the early predictors of developmental dyslexia (DD), a specific reading disorder, using Machine Learning. Early detection of DD will enable interventions at a very early age.
• The Praat study explores the possibility of using individual spontaneous language and speech data for diagnosing neuropsychiatric diseases and individual prognostication. The project focuses on individuals that have been diagnosed with depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease, aiming to gain insight into the person behind the disease. If you are interested in participating you can read further information here (in Dutch).
• The PrenaTaal study examines the effects of gestational diabetes on prenatal language development by comparing auditory and speech processing of healthy and at-risk infants at birth and at 6 months of age.
• The Rhythmic Underpinnings of Statistical Learning project investigates whether musical, rhythmic and cognitive abilities predict individual performance in statistical learning for speech segmentation. This will provide new insights on language acquisition and aims to contribute to the early detection of language disorders.
• CodeTaal invetigates how children with developmental language disorder (DLD) learn foreign languages and how they can be supported by doing so. Our recent findings reveal, for example, that children with DLD learn English vocabulary and grammar faster if they begin English lessons at a later age. Based on our research insights, we have developed a lesson series tailored to the specific needs of English learners with DLD.
• The Language as predictor of psychosis in the 22q11.2 deletion syndrome project investigates language in relation to (pre)psychotic symptoms in 22q11DS, supporting our understanding of developmental mechanisms and early identification of this devastating mental illness.
• The Driving Forces and Constraints of Linguistic Generalizations project investigates the factors that drive rule induction ability during language acquisition.