Want to help us find out what babies and children know?

Who are we?
We are a research unit at The University of Queensland devoted to understanding how babies, toddlers and young children understand the world around them. We are always in need of participants (newborn to 5 years old). Our studies are conducted at The University of Queensland in the Early Cognitive Development Unit (ECDU). We invite interested children and their parents to visit our Unit and take part in our fun and exciting research.

What do we do?
At the ECDU we play various engaging and interesting games with children from newborn to 5 years old. Our studies are designed to answer questions about the development of infants and young children. Parents are never separated from their children, and parents and children receive a small gift and a certificate for participating. We will also send you a newsletter outlining key findings of our studies.

Who benefits?
The research that we do contributes to our general understanding of child development. For instance, one of our research projects showed that toddlers found it easier to learn how to make a toy rattle from a picture book with colour photographs compared to a picture book illustrated with line drawings. This showed us that children are more likely to learn about real objects in books from more realistic pictures then less realistic pictures.

Our research also informs clinicians, teachers and parents who work with children, including children with disabilities. For instance, another of our projects investigates how children with autism understand emotion, and such work may pave the way for new techniques designed to improve the communication skills of children with and without developmental disabilities.

Finally, children and parents who visit the Unit enjoy a stimulating experience, and learn more about themselves and others along the way. So we like to think that everyone stands to benefit!

Interested in helping us understand more about children’s development?

If you are interested in registering on our database or finding out more information, then there are a number of ways to contact us.

Call Sally Clark on: (07) 3365 6323

Email us on ecdu@psy.uq.edu.au and we can then forward you our Registration Form to enable your child to participate in our studies.