Participate in our online studies!
We have ongoing studies conducted over Zoom! You can view the studies and what age ranges we are looking for below. If you are interested in a study that your child is the right age for you can sign up by clicking the link and selecting an appointment that works for you. You can sign up for as many studies as your child is eligible for!
We have ongoing studies conducted over Zoom! You can view the studies and what age ranges we are looking for below. If you are interested in a study that your child is the right age for you can sign up by clicking the link and selecting an appointment that works for you. You can sign up for as many studies as your child is eligible for!
Check how old your baby is in months using the age calculator below.
Check how old your baby is in months using the age calculator below.
Ages: 4 and 5 month olds
Ages: 4 and 5 month olds
Sights & Sounds Study
Sights & Sounds Study
How are babies learning to connect their different senses? Do they already use what they see to predict what they will hear? In this 20 minute study over Zoom, your baby will watch a ball bouncing around in a box and also hear sounds that do or do not line up with the ball’s motion. We will use gaze tracking to ask: are babies surprised when sights and sounds don’t line up?
*This study requires a laptop or desktop computer*
Ages: 8 and 9 month olds
Ages: 8 and 9 month olds
Friend of a Friend Study
Friend of a Friend Study
How do babies map social connections? Do babies expect people who act friendly towards the same other person to be more likely to be friends themselves? In this 15 minute study, your child will see one character engage in friendly, matching interactions with two different social partners. A fourth character be present but separate. When the first character leaves, we will test if your baby expects the two partners to interact with one another, rather than the separate individual.
*This study requires a laptop or desktop computer*
Ages: 9 to 12 month olds
Ages: 9 to 12 month olds
How do infants with siblings with autism learn in social and nonsocial settings?
How do infants with siblings with autism learn in social and nonsocial settings?
In this 15-minute study over Zoom, your baby will see a series of fun, colorful toys. An actor will also be on screen. Sometimes the actor will look at the camera and then back at the toy, suggesting they are "sharing attention" to the toy with your baby. Other times, the actor will just look at the toys. We will use gaze tracking to measure how well babies learn to recognize the toys. This study will help us understand how caregivers can support or distract from babies' learning.
*This study requires that your infant has an older sibling with an autism diagnosis (proof will be requested) and you will need a laptop or desktop computer*
Ages: 12 and 13 month olds
Ages: 12 and 13 month olds
Do infants prefer to learn from empathizers?
Do infants prefer to learn from empathizers?
In a 15-minute study over Zoom, your baby will watch characters respond happily or sadly to another character's success. Each of the characters will label an object with a new word. We will use gaze tracking to ask: Do babies prefer to learn the name of an object when it is taught to them by a character who expressed empathy instead of sadness?
*This study requires a laptop or desktop computer*
Ages: 14 and 15 month olds
Ages: 14 and 15 month olds
Do infants learn who is and isn't helpful?
Do infants learn who is and isn't helpful?
In this 15-minute session over Zoom, your infant will first watch videos in which one character helps another character get an object that is out of reach. Sometimes the helper will have to choose which needy character to help, and we will test if your baby builds up expectations about who the helper will help. This study will help us understand how babies learn about helping and social relationships.
*This study requires a laptop or desktop computer*
Sign Up for Future Studies!
Sign Up for Future Studies!
Ages: 3 months to 8 years
Ages: 3 months to 8 years
Our lab is always looking for baby and child scientists to participate in our studies! If your child is not currently the right age for our present studies, you can sign up to be contacted when we have a study for them.
No appointment times work? If there are no open appointment slots that work for you please email us at socallab@ucsd.edu and we can find a time and day that works for you!
No appointment times work? If there are no open appointment slots that work for you please email us at socallab@ucsd.edu and we can find a time and day that works for you!
Child not in our age ranges? If you and your child are interested in participating in our studies, but we do not have any studies available for your child's age, please fill out this form. We will contact you when we have a new study for them!
Child not in our age ranges? If you and your child are interested in participating in our studies, but we do not have any studies available for your child's age, please fill out this form. We will contact you when we have a new study for them!
Is now not a good time, but you want us to contact you later? Provide your name and email below and we'll send you an email in a month to give you more information about our ongoing studies.
Is now not a good time, but you want us to contact you later? Provide your name and email below and we'll send you an email in a month to give you more information about our ongoing studies.