Dean D'Souza

Dean D'Souza is an Associate Research Fellow at Birkbeck, University of London, and a Research Associate at University College London. He specializes in developmental psychology and cognitive neuroscience, focusing on neurodevelopmental disorders such as Down syndrome, fragile X syndrome, and Williams syndrome. His work examines how early attentional, perceptual, and cognitive mechanisms influence language and communication skills in both typical and atypical populations.

Education: PhD in Psychology (CBCD, Birkbeck), MSc in Cognitive Neuroscience (Distinction), BSc Psychology (First Class), MA Philosophy, and BA Peace Studies. Professional affiliations include Fellow of the Cambridge Philosophical Society (F.C.P.S.) and Chartered Psychologist (C.Psychol.) with the British Psychological Society.

Research interests emphasize tracing developmental trajectories of higher-level abilities to infancy, with a focus on visual attention, auditory-visual integration, and neural correlates of social perception. He has presented at conferences globally and published extensively on topics like cross-syndrome comparisons, bilingualism impacts, and neurocognitive studies of genetic disorders.

Grants/Awards: Over £70,000 in grants from organizations like the British Academy, Williams Syndrome Foundation, and The Waterloo Foundation. Notable projects include studies on bilingualism effects, sleep’s role in language development, and neurocognitive markers in infants with genetic syndromes.

Key contributions include insights into atypical development through cross-syndrome comparisons and the role of early neurophysiological markers in predicting later outcomes. His work bridges basic science and clinical applications, aiming to improve interventions for neurodevelopmental disorders.

Labs/Teams: Affiliated with the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at Birkbeck, collaborating with institutions like UCL and international networks studying Williams syndrome and autism spectrum disorders.