Researchers
Professor Susan Hespos
Infant Learning & Developmental Psychology
Sue Hespos is Professor of Infant Studies, Leader of the BabyLab and Director of Impact & Engagement at the MARCS Institute. Sue is a developmental psychologist whose research explores infant language acquisition, cognitive development and learning. Her work challenges long‑held assumptions about early learning and informs education, child wellbeing and lifelong cognitive development.
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Professor Paola Escudero
Language Development
Paola Escudero is Director of Research at the MARCS Institute. Paola is a linguist whose work focuses on speech and visual processing in diverse populations across the lifespan, including monolingual and multilingual infants, young children, and adults as well as zebra finches. Her research deepens understanding of language learning and supports more inclusive approaches to education, communication technologies and language development in culturally diverse societies.
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Professor Caroline Jones
Language Learning & Technology
Caroline Jones researches how language is learned, used and supported across the lifespan. Her work spans language development, language education and communication in health contexts, including early assessment and intervention. By combining insights from linguistics, psychology and technology, her research supports more effective communication in educational, clinical and community settings.
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Dr Antonia Goetz
Child Development
Antonia Goetz is a research fellow in infant studies whose work focuses on child language acquisition and neuroscience. Antonia investigates the interplay between infants’ speech perception, social interaction, and neural processes, advancing our understanding of developmental mechanisms. Her work offers insights into perceptual attunement, neural sensitivity to linguistic cues, and the early predictors of language impairments.
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Dr Luyao (Louie) Liang
Language Development
Luyao (Louie) Liang is an Associate Lecturer in early childhood education in the School of Education whose research examines how language, literacy and technology shape learning in the early years of life. Louie focuses on early multilingual development, multiliteracies and the role of digital environments in language learning.
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Dr Genevieve Quek
Face & Object Perception
Genevieve Quek is a senior research fellow in cognitive neuroscience whose work focuses on the neural basis of high level vision. Her research investigates how sensory information is processed and interpreted, with the goal of understanding how we interact with our visual environment. This work contributes to knowledge of brain mechanisms supporting visual perception, in particular, the temporal dynamics of face and object recognition.
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Dr Jenny Zeng
Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
Jenny Zeng is a postdoctoral research fellow in developmental cognitive neuroscience. Her work uses infant-friendly neuroimaging methods — including tracking brain activity in naturalistic settings — to investigate how infants from diverse backgrounds acquire the complex rules of speech so efficiently. Beyond language, she studies the behavioural and neural foundations of how children understand objects and their relationships. By mapping how the brain builds intelligence in early development, she aims to better support diverse developmental paths.
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