To register your child, call the Infant and Toddler Language Studies lab on (01904) 433619. Leave a message if we are unable to answer the phone: we will get back to you as soon as you can. You can also send an e-mail to linguistics-babylab@york.ac.uk.
2. What will happen if we agree to take part and what do we need to do?
If you do decide to sign up, your details will be entered into our database. Often we advertise for babies younger than we need them as we get quite a narrow testing window in terms of age for some studies. When your child reaches the right age, someone will call you to arrange an appointment: either for you to visit the University or for us to visit you at home, depending on the study. We will arrange a time that is the most convenient for you and for your baby's daily routine. After the phonecall, you may be sent an information sheet in the post with a letter confirming your appointment. At the start of your initial visit, you will be asked to sign some consent forms.
All of our baby language studies involve one visit to our lab at the University for a speech perception experiment. You will be in a large soundproof booth. Your child will be seated on your lap while different types of speech are played through loudspeakers, and your child’s response to this speech will be observed and video-recorded. We flash little lights to make your baby look in certain directions, and the speakers are positioned beneath the lights. You will be asked to wear headphones playing jumbled speech, so that you will not be able to hear the speech your child is hearing. This ensures that your response will not influence your child’s response in any way.
Some of our baby and toddler language studies involve us making some recordings in your home. Sometimes this is just a half-hour filming session of you simply playing with your child. Your child will wear a special vest containing a radio microphone. You will also have to wear a microphone. Other studies involve your baby wearing a digital recording device made specially for babies throughout the day over a weekend. The device is known as LENA and enables us to record for a much longer period of time and without an observer present.
Our new toddler study involves some filming sessions and then a series of visits to your home and to the University for us to do special tasks with your child. These tasks involve reading a picture story book or moving some little toys around in a set of boxes.
Taking part in our research is always entirely voluntary. If you give us your details but then decide you no longer want to or cannot take part when we call you to offer a place in a study, this is absolutely fine. And if you start to participate in a long-term study but then change your mind, you are free to withdraw at any time and without giving a reason.
The speech perception experiments in the lab only last for a few minutes, but you should allow about half an hour in total for the visit to the University as some babies are asleep when they arrive or need a quick feed before we begin. There are also some consent forms for you to sign. Some studies also involve us filming you in the baby lab after the speech perception experiment, which means your visit may last up to an hour. Home visits usually last around 45 minutes. The toddler tasks at the University will take about 30-45 minutes.
5. Will my child’s participation in the research be kept confidential?
Any publication of the data of the findings of this study will maintain strict confidentiality as to your identity and that of your child. You can choose whether or not to allow your child’s video and audio footage to be used (under a pseudonym) as part of any teaching or research material. All video material is kept in a locked room.
6. Have your staff been police-checked to verify that they are safe to work with children?
Yes. All our staff who come into contact with babies and children have received an enhanced disclosure from the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB).
You will be paid £10 per visit (to either the home or the University) to thank you for your time. There is a free short-stay car park near to our department that you can use during University visits and if your visit is going to last longer than 45 minutes, we will provide you with a parking permit.
8. How can I find the lab at the University?
Follow the Where To Find Us link on our webpage for a map showing the location of the Department of Language and Linguistic Science. The baby lab is on the second floor of B Block in Vanbrugh College. (There is a lift.) Full directions will be sent in a letter when an appointment has been made for your visit. The toddler studies are currently taking part in a different building called Grimston House: your research assistant will advise you where to go when the time comes.
9. What are the possible benefits of taking part?
It is a chance for some one-on-one time with your child. We hope you will find it interesting and fun to take part in our studies. You will also be contributing to our understanding of the very early stages of language development. We will tell you about our results as the studies progress in regular newsletters.
10. I have an older child at home. Can they be present at the sessions?
If you are unable to find anyone to look after your other children during the visit, we can provide a babysitter. Anyone acting as a babysitter will also have had a CRB check. We prefer siblings to be in a separate room (under supervision) during the actual filming and experiments. If your other children need you at any point (e.g. because they need to go to the bathroom), we will stop filming straightaway so you can tend to them.
11. My child has someone else looking after them some of the time. Can they be at the sessions instead of me?
It’s absolutely fine for another care-giver (grandparent, aunt, nanny etc) to bring the baby to the University, as long as the child’s parents have signed our consent forms. It is also fine to conduct home sessions with another care-giver.
12. What happens when the research stops?
We will be happy to send you a summary of our findings when a study is complete, some time in the future. We will also keep you updated with regular newsletters as the studies progress.
13. Is it safe for my child to take part?
Our studies have been reviewed by the Research Ethics Committee of the University of York who are satisfied that there is absolutely no risk of harm to either you or your child. All studies are completely non-invasive. Our baby experiments at the University only involve measuring the length of time your child turns their head in a particular direction in response to a sound. Our toddler experiments involve looking at a book or moving some toys between compartments in a set of boxes.
14. We are a bilingual family. Can we still take part?
This will depend on the study. Unfortunately, our main studies at the moment are for babies and toddlers from English-speaking families only. This is because we are looking at sound patterns and need to make comparisons across a large group of children, so we need the language they hear around them to be consistent.
15. What if my child is ill on the day?
We don't expect you to go ahead with visits if your child is poorly. Just ring either the lab on (01904) 433619 or the mobile or office number of the person who normally visits you at home, and we'll reschedule as soon as your child is feeling better.
16. I signed up for one of your studies ages ago but I haven't heard anything. Have you forgotten about me?
We want to include as many babies as possible in our studies. Please note that some of our baby studies are for infants as old as 12 months so it may be a little while before you hear from us. Unfortunately we may not be able to include everyone who has registered so far. We do apologise for any disappointment caused.
17. What if my child is hungry or needs changing during a visit?
We realise that despite your best efforts to make sure a baby is fed and changed before a visit, things may not go to plan. We are happy for you to feed your baby in the lab and we have a changing mat for you to use if required.
18. What if there is a problem?
Any complaint about the way in which you or your child have been dealt with during the study will be addressed. In the event of any complaints arising concerning this research, please address them to Professor S. Pintzuk, Head of Department, Department of Language and Linguistic Science, Vanbrugh College, University of York, Heslington, York. YO10 5DD or to Dr. Robert McMurray, Chair of HSSEC, The York Management School, Sally Baldwin Buildings Block A, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, tel. 01904 432703.