Find Academic Supervisors

Paula FikkertView profile

Professor

• Phonology
• First Language Acquisition
• Language Development
• +5 more

Paula Fikkert is a Professor of Language Acquisition and Phonology at Radboud University Nijmegen, where she is affiliated with the Centre for Language Studies and the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures within the Faculty of Arts. She currently serves as Dean of the Faculty of Arts and is a member of the Board of Deans at Radboud University. Her educational background includes a master's degree from the University of Groningen and a PhD from Leiden University (1994, cum laude), for which she received the AVT dissertation prize for the best dissertation in linguistics. Her doctoral work focused on "On the acquisition of prosodic structure." Professor Fikkert's research primarily investigates the acquisition of phonological representations in the lexicon and their role in speech perception and production. She explores how phonological representations mediate between acoustic signals and meaning in speech perception, and between meaning and articulatory output in speech production. Her work addresses fundamental questions about how babies learn language, how they process sounds and words, and how they store this information in their mental dictionaries. A significant portion of her research focuses on early indicators of developmental language problems and how children learn to monitor their own speech and that of others. Her research program has revealed important insights into language acquisition through behavioral and neurocognitive methods conducted at the Baby Research Center (BRC). She has contributed to several important databases of spontaneous speech, including CLPF for typically developing children, IPROSLA for children acquiring sign language, and VALID for children with speech disorders. Professor Fikkert has received numerous prestigious awards throughout her career, including: AVT dissertation prize for best linguistics dissertation Neil and Saras Smith Medal for lifetime achievement in the scholarly study of linguistics (2024) Synergy Award for research on phonology As a principal investigator, Fikkert has led significant research projects, including serving as PI in the BRC-lab and leading the research for the Radboud Language Development Fund established by Kino Jansonius. She previously held an Innovation Grant from NWO (2002-2007) and has been involved in numerous collaborative research projects with international partners. Her leadership extends to administrative roles, having served as research director of the Centre for Language Studies (CLS) at Radboud from 2011 to 2015, and as a member of the Humanities Board and later the Social Sciences and Humanities board of NWO. Professor Fikkert leads the First Language Acquisition research group at the Baby and Child Research Center (BRC), which conducts scientific research on children from pregnancy to age six. The BRC has three locations on the Radboud University campus and investigates the development of language, social interaction, thinking, and well-being in mothers and children. Her work has practical applications in early identification of language development disorders and developing interventions to support children with language acquisition challenges.

Yasemin CelikkolView profile

Assistant Professor

• Global Communication
• Geopolitics of Media
• Turkish TV Series
• +5 more

Yasemin Celikkol is an Assistant Professor in Residence at Northwestern University in Qatar, holding joint appointments in the Liberal Arts and Communication programs. She is affiliated with the Institute for Advanced Study in the Global South (IAS_NUQ) and serves on the Board of Advisors for the University of Pennsylvania's CARGC. Her research integrates communication, culture, and geopolitics, focusing on global TV dramas, fashion hegemony, and sign language advocacy. Celikkol is a multilingual scholar (Bulgarian, Turkish, Japanese, Russian) and active public intellectual, contributing to media literacy debates through platforms like Truthout.org. Education: PhD in Communication (Annenberg School, UPenn, 2021), MA in Communication (UPenn), MA in Intercultural Communication (International Christian University, Tokyo), BA in Politics (NYU). She has held academic positions across Bulgaria, Japan, and the U.S., and received FLAS Fellowship recognition for Arabic/Middle East studies. Teaching : Designs courses in global studies, media anthropology, and communication theory. Implements pedagogical frameworks blending theory with real-world case studies. Mentors students in academic/professional development. Public Impact : Authored pioneering Turkish baby sign language book (2011) and positive discipline guide (2015), collaborating with Deaf organizations to promote accessibility. Her work bridges academic rigor with practical societal impact.

• Psychotherapy
• Foster care
• Professional orientation and counseling
• +7 more

Monika Bogdanova serves as a Professor at Sofia University's Faculty of Education, Department of Social Work, where she holds dual responsibilities as a Lecturer and Head of the Faculty's Career Center. Her academic role encompasses teaching and research focused on vulnerable populations, with affiliations spanning the university's core educational structures. Her research explores multifaceted domains including psychotherapy, foster care systems, professional counseling methodologies, and developmental support for children with specific needs. Key areas include sign language applications, psychoanalysis in neonatal care, and early childhood interventions, reflecting a commitment to inclusive and trauma-informed practices. Bogdanova's publications (2011–2019) demonstrate consistent focus on vocational guidance, psychoanalytic approaches in social work, and inclusive strategies for children with disabilities. Recurring themes include counseling frameworks for at-risk youth, language development tools, and perinatal mental health, synthesized through handbooks and theoretical texts. She mentors graduate researchers, notably supervising Krustina Todorova on vocational guidance for adolescents in conflict with the law. Research leadership includes projects on: Art-based asocial behavior prevention in Vrabnitsa schools Mentoring models in higher education (2012) Clinical frameworks for children with cerebral palsy (2011) Municipal collaborations for disability/elderly support programs

• Developmental Psychology
• Gesture and Language Development
• Parent-Infant Interaction
• +3 more

Dr. Elizabeth Kirk is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University's Faculty of Science and Engineering. She leads research at the ARU Centre for Mind and Behaviour while maintaining active collaborations with institutions across Europe including the University of Sheffield, University of Central Lancashire, University of York, and Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics. Education: PhD in Psychology (University of Hertfordshire, 2009) Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (University of York, 2015) Her research explores three primary areas: (1) gesture's role in language development across monolingual and bilingual infants, (2) gestural influence on creative cognition in children, and (3) bodily changes affecting cognitive-emotional development. Current work with cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Catherine Preston examines body perception during pregnancy. Scientific contributions span two decades, with key themes in gestural communication, mind-mindedness, and cognitive development. While not explicitly listing awards, her grant funding from prestigious institutions like the British Academy and ESRC demonstrates recognition of her research impact. Grants totaling over £55,000 include: British Academy grant (2017) for body representation studies York University funding (2016) for gesture-language research Leverhulme Trust/British Academy (2012) for symbolic gesture analysis ESRC Festival funding (2009) for infant communication workshops

• Developmental Psychology
• Gesture Studies
• Language Development
• +3 more

Elizabeth Kirk is a Senior Lecturer in the Psychology department at Anglia Ruskin University, part of the Faculty of Science and Engineering and the School of Psychology, Sport and Sensory Science. She joined ARU in 2018 and is affiliated with the ARU Centre for Mind and Behaviour. Her research focuses on gesture's role in language, thought, and developmental processes, with particular emphasis on parent-infant interactions, bilingualism, and the impact of bodily changes on cognition. Education: PhD in Psychology, University of Hertfordshire (2009) Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice, University of York (2015) Research Interests: Gesture in parent-infant interactions and bilingual language development Gestural influence on creativity and eyewitness memory Body perception and cognitive development during childhood and pregnancy Collaborations: Works with researchers at the University of Sheffield, University of York, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, and others. Current projects include investigating gestural misinformation effects and the developmental impacts of bodily changes. Grants & Awards: £8,818 from the British Academy (2017) for body perception research £2,500 from York Culture and Communication (2016) for gesture-language studies Multiple grants from the British Psychological Society and ESRC Teaching: Leads modules on Issues in Social and Developmental Psychology, emphasizing practical applications of gesture theory and developmental research methods.

Rory DepaolisView profile

Professor

• Infant Language Development
• Speech and Hearing Science
• Language Acquisition
• +3 more

Rory Depaolis is a faculty member at James Madison University, affiliated with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. He directs the Ph.D. program in his field and leads the Infant and Toddler Language Laboratory, focusing on language development during the first year of life. His research bridges infant vocalization, speech processing, and clinical interventions for populations with historically delayed language outcomes. Fields of Interest: Infant Language Development, Speech and Hearing Science, Phonological Development, Child Development, Developmental Psychology His work spans empirical studies on babbling contingency, speech segmentation, and the role of production in language acquisition, with recent efforts on app-based tools like BabblePlay to enhance early language outcomes. While no specific awards or grants are detailed in the provided text, his 20-year expertise in family-based research underscores practical applications in mitigating language disparities.

• Midwifery
• Sexual Health
• Reproductive Ethics
• +5 more

Sarah Lewis serves as Lead Midwife for Education at Keele University's School of Nursing and Midwifery, holding a BSc (Hons) Midwifery (1st Class), MSc Medical Ethics with Law, and PGCE for Further/Higher Education. With extensive clinical experience across obstetric units, midwife-led units, and sexual health clinics—including volunteer work in Australian indigenous healthcare—she also acts as external examiner for the University of the West of Scotland. Her educational qualifications include: BSc (Hons) Midwifery, 1st Class MSc Medical Ethics with Law PGCE for Further, Higher and Adult Education Family Planning Nurse Issuer Lewis's research spans midwifery, sexual health, reproductive ethics, and complementary therapies, with specific projects evaluating treatment for children exhibiting sexually harmful behaviour, acupuncture in midwifery, and infant massage applications. Her interests extend to preverbal communication, baby sign language, clinical bullying dynamics, and sexual violence support systems. Recent scholarly output demonstrates her focus on mental health interventions, notably the 2024 COPING feasibility study examining GP-delivered psychosocial support for youth self-harm—reflecting interdisciplinary engagement with psychology, primary care, and youth mental health. As midwifery programme lead, she teaches across all three undergraduate years while holding module leadership for Year 1 and 3 courses, previously extending to Master's level instruction. Her professional practice integrates holistic healthcare approaches as a certified massage practitioner, infant massage instructor, and Reiki practitioner.

Alice SuozziView profile

Research Fellow

• Linguistics
• Syntax
• Semantics
• +6 more

Alice Suozzi is a Research Fellow at the Department of Comparative Linguistic and Cultural Studies, Ca' Foscari University of Venice. She earned her cum laude PhD in Modern Languages, Cultures, and Societies and Language Sciences (Language Sciences curriculum) in 2024 after completing her cum laude Master’s in Italian Studies and Linguistic Sciences at the University of Bologna in 2019. Her research focuses on the syntax-semantics interface, Italian verb argument structures, and language acquisition, particularly instrument realization in typologically diverse languages. Education PhD in Lingue, culture e società moderne e scienze del linguaggio (Curriculum: Scienze del Linguaggio), Ca' Foscari University of Venice (2024) Master’s in Italianistica, Culture Letterarie Europee e Scienze Linguistiche (LM-14 - MODERN PHILOLOGY), University of Bologna (2019) Certificat de Spécialisation en Linguistique, Université de Genève (2024) Research Interests center on Italian syntactic optionality, instrumental argument structures, computational linguistics benchmarks, and comparative studies between spoken and sign languages. Her work integrates experimental methods, corpus analysis, and pre-trained language models to investigate how children acquire complex morphosyntactic structures and how instruments function in Italian dialects and cross-modal communication. Scientific Activities include organizing seminar series like Inclubembo and contributing to conferences such as Zadar Linguistic Forum, LSRL-53, and NOCroDeP 2023. Her publications address topics ranging from Italian clitic pronouns to syntactic bootstrapping hypotheses, with a 2025 article introducing the BAMBI baby language model for Italian.

Aaron KaatView profile

Associate Professor

• Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Patient-Reported Outcome Measures
• Cognitive Assessment Tools
• +3 more

Aaron Kaat is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medical Social Sciences at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. His research focuses on neurodevelopmental disorders, patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), cognitive assessment tools, and psychometrics. He is affiliated with institutions such as the Institute for Innovations in Developmental Sciences, the Center for Patient-Centered Outcomes, and the Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NUCATS). Kaat's work involves developing and validating standardized tools like the NIH Baby Toolbox® and Mobile Toolbox for assessing neurodevelopmental domains including executive function, memory, language, motor skills, and social-emotional functioning. His recent publications examine pandemic impacts on early intervention systems, cross-cultural psychometric validation, and clinical trial readiness for rare disorders like SCN2A-related syndromes and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. He employs mixed-methods approaches, simulation studies, and novel psychometric methodologies such as bookmarking and measurement invariance analysis. Research also includes technology-based assessments (iPad, smartphone platforms), caregiver-mediated interventions, and addressing biases in developmental measurements across diverse populations.