Dr. Suzanne Curtin

My research is centered on understanding how young infants make sense of all the sounds in their world and begin to learn their language. Specifically, my current project(s) focus on how infants who are typically developing use the meaningful sounds and sound patterns in their language to learn about words. I also work on exploring whether infants who are at risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder show similar early preferences for speech, and whether this is related to their social communication development.

Ideally, the outcome of my research will lead to a broader picture of how language, one of the hallmarks of human development, is acquired so quickly and seamlessly, and how early preferences for human speech may impact one’s developmental trajectory and outcome.