Healthy Human Development Group
Who We Are
The Healthy Human Development Group is a collection of research labs in the Department of Psychology at the University of Manitoba. Each lab focuses its research on a different aspect of human development. We are always looking for families who may want to help with our projects so please consider signing up.
What We Do
Developmental psychology is a multidisciplinary research area that spans across several fields, such as linguistics, cognitive psychology, and neuroscience. The goal is to understand how humans grow and change over time.
Our Labs
The Healthy Human Development Group consists of the four research labs listed below:
Baby Language Lab
This lab is dedicated to understanding how infants learn to speak their first language as well as what influences their language acquisition. Click here to learn more.
Communication and Development Lab
This lab focuses on how people understand the communicative intentions of speakers and how this ability develops. Click here to learn more.
Hearts & Minds Lab
This lab studies caregiver and child mental health, and applies neuroscience research related to stress to develop therapeutic interventions that foster positive caregiver-child relationships. Click here to learn more.
Young Minds Research Lab
Our lab examines how children's theories about the world change as they age. Click here to learn more.
Help us do Science
Please sign-up here to help us with ongoing projects: https://umanitobapsych.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9S3O8FbbcmZfKei
We are looking for children between the ages 0-16 and parents to help us with our research studies about human development.
Once you sign up, we will send you information about upcoming research projects that you or your child is eligible for.
Most studies are short, 1 hour, one-time studies. There is no obligation to participate in any individual study.
Fun Activities for Home
We have fun science activities and colouring sheets for families to do at home. Click here to find all the activities.
Activity 1: Brain Colouring Sheet
Learn about the parts of the brain with this fun colouring sheet. When you think, feel and behave in certain ways, your whole brain works together. But, scientists think there are certain behaviours and abilities that start in certain parts of the brain. For example, the frontal lobe is important for executive functioning. The parietal lobe does a lot of thing. It regulates sensory and motor information, and is important for related abilities like spatial reasoning. The occipital lobe is vital for visual processing. The cerebellum controls balance and posture. The brainstem is responsible for vital functions like breathing and blood pressure. Lastly, the temporal lobe processes auditory information.
Click here to download the activity sheet.
Activity 2: Memory Game
See if you can remember the pictures on the front of the page after looking at it for 10 seconds! This activity uses chunking, which is a memory strategy that helps us remember information by grouping things into familiar categories. Chunking is a strategy children can actively use around 6-7 years old. However, it can begin spontaneously (implicitly) in infancy.
Click here to download the activity sheet.
Activity 3: Rhyme Time
Connect the words that rhyme! This activity requires phonological awareness, which is the ability to detect the sound structure of spoken language. Phonological awareness is required whenever we try to manipulate individual sounds (phonemes) in words. They are also used when we decide whether two words rhyme with each other. Phonological awareness typically develops in early childhood and is an essential skill for learning to read.
Click here for version 1 (just pictures) and click here for version 2 (pictures and words).
Activity 4: Self-Recognition Test
Try to guess which animals can recognize themselves in the mirror. (Hint: The answers are great ape and dolphin)! To measure self-recognition, scientists use the mirror test (or rouge test). In this test, an experimenter puts red paint on the subject’s forehead. If the child or animal touches the red dot on their forehead while looking in the mirror it means that they can recognize themselves. At around 20-24 months, most children will pass this “test” and recognize themselves in the mirror by pointing to the red dot.
Click here to download the activity.
Contact us
If you have any questions, please email healthyhumans@umanitoba.ca