Janet Werker
University Killam Professor and Area Coordinator
Psychology
The University of British Columbia
Canada
Biography
Dr. Janet Werker is a University Killam Professor and Area Coordinator at The University Of British Columbia.
Research Interest
My research focuses on understanding the roots of language acquisition, by studying speech perception in infancy, the mechanisms by which native speech sound categories are acquired, and how speech perception supports early word learning. In my lab we study infants from hours after birth up to toddler hood using behavioral, electrophysiological (ERP), and non-invasive optical neural imaging using near-infrared-spectroscopy (NIRS). We study infants growing up in different language environments, infants growing up bilingual, and infants with, or at risk for, developmental disabilities. Adult studies focus on speech perception and lexical processing of both spoken language and visual speech, and involve behavioral and neuroimaging studies. More recently, in collaboration, I have also begun exploring the nature of critical periods, and epigenetic processes that underlie developmental change. Janet Werker is also part of the Early Development Research Group, a consortium of six research centers interested in the development of language, learning, and social understanding in infants and children.
