More Research Opportunities!
Montclair State University has many labs you can participate in. If interested in more research, you can find our affiliated Psychology labs below!
The Cognitive and Language Development Lab
The Spatial Development Lab
Wayfinding Lab
The Cognitive and Language Development Lab at Montclair State University conducts both in-person and Zoom-based research focused on infant and child development. The lab investigates how infants and children interpret and understand the world around them. For participants ages 0 to 24 months, researchers examine general developmental patterns by measuring spontaneous reactions. For participants 24 months and older, studies are conducted through engaging activities such as friendly games, pictures, and short videos. Overall, the lab explores how spatial language, non-linguistic representation, and adult language input influence infants’ and children’s development.
The Spatial Development Lab at Montclair State University is a part of the two Spatial Development Labs. This lab looks at how people with intellectual and or developmental disabilities navigate through a new place. They also look at how these spatial abilities develop. This lab currently has two studies. For the study “Spatial Navigation as a Domain-Specific Marker of Cognitive Decline in Down Syndrome” this lab is looking for participants that are adults with Down Syndrome, 35-50 years old and their caregivers/support people. This study is run with games and tasks. This is to learn more about how adults with Down Syndrome navigate new places. And also how they use their memory. The “Financial Decision-Making Among Parents of Children with Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities” study is looking for parents of a child with an intellectual and or developmental disabilities, 6-17 years old. This study is run with a survey about financial decision-making. Done through zoom, this study explores how parents of children with intellectual and or developmental disabilities manage different financial decisions.
The Wayfinding Lab at Montclair State University is the other Spatial Development Lab. They look to see how children learn to navigate the world. Looking into spatial decisions, mental maps, how we remember locations, and how people everyday find their way through environments. With their current study “Wayfinding in Children: Developmental Pathways, Supporting Cognitive Processes, and Gender Differences” they are looking for children 6 to 10 years old. The study has two different sessions, one in person and one on zoom. Durning the study your child will complete fun "brain games" like a virtual reality (VR) game and walking around the MSU campus. This study’s purpose is to learn more about how children's navigation abilities function and develop.