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.
