Krista Byers-Heinlein, PhD

Education

PhD (University of British Columbia)

Research interests

My research investigates infant development, with a focus on language acquisition. I use primarily behavioral methods such as eye tracking, looking-time, sucking, and reaching measures. I am particularly interested in infants growing up in bilingual environments and the mechanisms that they use to acquire two languages simultaneously. Some current projects compare speech perception and word learning in monolingual and bilingual infants. A related line of work investigates bilingual parenting, and how the language strategies used by bilingual families influence children’s language learning. We are now using our findings to detect bilingual children at risk for language impairment and delay. I also have a strong interest in and commitment to large-scale collaborations and Open Science.

I welcome e-mails from prospective MA and PhD students interested in applying to admission to the research training program, who have interests in early bilingualism and Open Science. Please get in touch well before our December 1st deadline.