We study how children reason about people, objects, words, and numbers.  This study is looking at how babies see causal relationships in simple physical interactions. The baby will be seated on a parent’s lap the whole time, and we will play some short animations on a monitor of blocks colliding with each other and moving in different ways. We will measure how long the baby looks at different events to gain insight into which differences babies see. This will help us understand how the ability to perceive causal relationships in the world develops in early infancy.

The study itself lasts about 10 minutes, and the appointment should take about 30 minutes total, with added time for playing and filling out paperwork. The baby gets to pick out a prize to take home (a stuffed animal, slinky, rubber duck etc.), and we will give the parent $5 as travel compensation.  If other children come along, a researcher will play with them during the study and they get to pick out prizes too.

We are located on Harvard’s campus and provide parking. Also, we can be reached easily from subway and bus routes.  We usually run this study Monday through Friday, 9:15am-5:00pm.  For directions, see https://www.harvardlds.org/for-parents/labs-spaces-and-directions/william-james-hall-directions/.

We run studies by appointment only.  To schedule a time, please call, text, or email!

Call: 617-384-7930

Text: 617-299-6486

email: [email protected]