Looking for baby scientists!

If you are about to become a parent or currently have a baby or toddler aged 0 to 24 months and you wish to volunteer to be part of our participant pool, then we would like to hear from you!

 

How do I volunteer?

If you have a child and wish to volunteer to participate in our studies, or if you are interested and wish to find out more information, please email baby@mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk with the following details and one of our researchers will be in contact with you. Please make sure you include the following information:

• your name
• your baby’s date of birth
• the times when you would be available to bring your baby in for a study
• your telephone number
  

 

What are you trying to find out?

Our studies ask a number of questions, such as:

• at what age do gender differences start to emerge between boys and girls?
• do hormone levels influence preferences for toys and certain types of motion?
• why do differences in babies’ concentration abilities emerge, and is
  it possible to train babies to concentrate better?
• how do babies perceive actions, and is this different to how adults perceive actions?
• how do babies learn to search for hidden objects?

 

What will a visit involve?

Some of the studies will involve you and your baby sitting  and watching a computer screen that presents a series of animations and cartoon clips.  Others will involve you and a researcher playing with your child. We will be making video recording of the games we play, and in some cases we will also record your child’s heart rate and movement patterns. Others involve wearing a specially designed cap that tracks where your child looks as they crawl around.

Your child will be with you at all times during your visit. All of the studies we run are designed to be fun, engaging and interactive. The techniques we use are of course completely safe for you and your child, and everything will be explained to you before you agree to take part. You will be free to opt out of any part of the study, and if for any reason you feel uncomfortable, you will be free to withdraw your child at any time.

Click here to see frequently asked questions.