Mentor: Dr. Laura Cirelli
Assistant Professor
Project Description
Dr. Cirelli directs the TEMPO lab (timing, entrainment, and music perception). At the TEMPO lab, we investigate the science behind how and why infants and children respond to music, song, and dance. We are especially interested in exploring when and how babies and children dance and how sharing music with others (parents, siblings, grandparents or even strangers) regulates emotions and directs social behaviour. Many projects in the lab involve either in-person or virtual data collection, and careful annotation of videos for target behaviours like rhythmic movement, smiling, and attention. SROP students are assigned a task on an ongoing project, and may be asked to interact with participant families, coding of videos, or audio editing. People with a musical background often find these questions especially rewarding, but no musical experience is necessary.
Mentorship Statement
I am dedicated to providing students with a welcoming and supportive lab environment where they can learn about all stages of the research process and gain important skills for academic as well as non-academic research-focused careers. I meet with students one-on-one as needed, and in weekly lab meetings, where students take turns leading discussions on their projects or exciting new papers related to their projects. Students are trained on study design, data collection, data processing and science literacy. The goal is for students to leave the TEMPO lab with a deep understanding of developmental psychology, music science, and the research process more generally. I am excited to be involved in the SROP programme. I truly value how much students bring to the lab through their creativity, personal perspectives, and collaborations!