Imaging Study Identifies Early Risk Factors for Depression and Anxiety
A recent studyled by a scientist at The University of Texas at Dallas has identified early risk factors linked to children’s temperament and a neural process that could foretell whether an individual might develop depression and anxiety in adolescence and early adulthood. Dr. Alva Tang, assistant professor of psychology in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, found that people who are more inhibited in early childhood and who also don’t respond typically to potential rewards as adolescents are vulnerable to developing depression later in life, more so than anxiety. Read more...
Recruiting Toddlers from Spanish-English Bilingual Families for an Online Study
The Language Interaction and Language Acquisition (LILAC) Lab at The University of Texas at Dallas is currently recruiting toddlers ages 21-30 months from Spanish-English bilingual households for an online study that seeks to understand how bilingual toddlers learn new words. Participating families will receive a free report of their child’s vocabulary development and their language environment. Parents will receive $125 upon study completion. Click here for more study information.
Student-Led Campaign and Holiday Event Draws Supporters
Center for Children and Families undergraduate students initiated, and are leading, an ImpactUTD campaign to support the children and families served by CCF outreach programs. The students organized a "Holiday Extravaganza" event in support of the campaign, with live music, playful activities, and a bilingual book reading. Children of many ages joined in the fun. Despite having reached their fundraising goal, the students are pressing on with a stretch goal of $5,000 to support Play With Me program expansion. Click here to support their efforts!
Developmental Language Disorder: Did You Know?
CCF faculty affiliate Dr. Lisa Goffman and her Language in Motion lab recently shared important information about developmental language disorder (DLD):
Children with DLD have trouble talking and listening, which may be misinterpreted as an attention issue, a social issue, or even laziness.
DLD is a common problem, but often goes unrecognized. About 1 in 14 people have DLD, making it 50 times more common than a hearing impairment and 5 times more common than autism (McGregor, 2020).
DLD can affect performance in school in many ways. Children with DLD are more likely to have reading issues and struggle with math (Young et al., 2002). They may also have behavioral challenges, making it difficult to follow through with classroom expectations.
I am so impressed by and grateful to our students for the initiatives they have taken in fundraising for our outreach programs serving local children and families. The holiday extravaganza event they planned and organized was loads of fun for everyone, festive, and so very well organized. We are a small but mighty team with the strength of our students who are trained to work with the children and families the Center serves, and who go on to make impacts for children and families in many fields. Congratulations to those who are graduating this semester! I wish everyone a restful and joyful holiday break.
