Professor Natasha Kirkham

Positions held:

Chair, Ethics Committee; School of Psychological Sciences

Address

Room 515, Malet Street

Email

Birkbeck: n.kirkham@bbk.ac.uk

Overview
Overview

Biography

Natasha is a Reader in Developmental Psychology and a member of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development. Natasha is also the Chair of Ethics for the School of Science.
Natasha's research is focussed on early learning and the environment, specifically on how learning occurs in the middle of everything, with a specific interest in the role of noise and home chaos on attention.
Current projects from her lab are investigating the impact of noise, distraction and rhythm on infants' and children's perception and attention. The lab presently consists of 4 PhD students (Suzanne Pahlman, Brittney Chere, Giulia Serino, and Judit Sebok-Rose).
In addition to her research, Natasha is a member of the Me, Human project, working with Gilly Forrester on a variety of public dissemination talks, and SOFAR, a society dedicated to supporting women in science.

Highlights
Qualifications
- PhD, Cornell University, 2003
- BSc, University of Toronto, 1997
- BA, University of Toronto, 1993
Web profiles
- CBCD web site
Professional memberships
- European Board Member, International Congress of Infant Studies
- Professional Member, Society for Research in Child Development
ORCID
0000-0002-3588-3945
Research
Research

Research projects

The role of noise in the development of attention

Abstract

This project is investigating how environmental noise can affect attention in an eye-tracking study with infants. PhD student Brittney Chere is eyetracking 10-month-old infants while they watch a predictable pattern on a screen (based on this paradigm). There are three conditions: Environmental Noise (a background track of noise typically heard in the home - vaccuum cleaner. television, mobile phones), Acute Noise (a mobile phone buzzes periodically), and Silence (no noise, a typical in-lab experience). In addition, parents take home a noise-level monitor to assess home noise, and fill in questionnaires regarding noise and baby's sleep quantity and quality.

Outcomes

Noise and Learning!

Abstract

PhD student Brittney Chere is rolling out an online study to see how children/adolescents' learning might be affected by various noises and distractions from the home, and how some children who are more experienced with noise might be better able to cope with this, while those with less experience might have more difficulty. Our results will help both parents and educators better support children's learning during this pandemic.

Rhythm and prosocial behaviour

Abstract

This project will be looking at how synchronous rhythm (between two or more people) can change feelings of similarity, of affiliation, and affect prosocial behaviour. Previous research has suggested that something as simple as swinging on a swing in the same rhythm as someone else can promote prosocial behaviours, such as sharing. In this research, PhD student Judit Sebok Rose and I are looking at whether we can induce this by getting children to tap along with someone on a screen. We are very interested in seeing whether we could use this idea as a way of promoting social understanding in children.

Distraction and Attention

Abstract

PhD student Giulia Serino is investigating the role of distraction in the development of attention. Distraction has quite a negative connotation usually ("don't get distracted!"), but actually being overly focussed can mean that you might miss important and interesting environmental cues (e.g., picking up on what someone is saying even if not directly related to your current project). In this project, we are looking at young children's ability to attend to relevant information, to use important distracting information to their advantage, while ignoring irrelevant information.

Lab information
- My lab currently consists of 4 PhD students (to read about their interests/projects, click on their names):
- Suzanne Pahlman
- Brittney Chere
- Giulia Serino
- Judit Sebok-Rose
- Recently graduated PhD student:
  Dr. Susanne de Mooij
- Dr. Jessica Massonnié
- Dr. Anna Peng
- Dr. Kristen Tummeltshammer
- Dr. Rachel Wu
Supervision and teaching
Supervision and teaching

Supervision

Supervisions within Birkbeck:

6

Current doctoral researchers
- HELEN GRIMSHAW
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Oct 2021 onwards
- JUDIT SEBOK-ROSE
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Oct 2020 onwards
- LINDA CERMINARA
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Sep 2024 onwards
Doctoral alumni since 2013-14
- BRITTNEY CHERE
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Oct 2018
  
  Title of thesis:
  The impact of in-home noise on cognitive development
  
  Awarded:
  2022
- SUSANNE DE MOOIJ
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Oct 2017
  
  Title of thesis:
  Optimising adaptivity in online learning environments
  
  Awarded:
  2021
- JESSICA MASSONNIE
  
  Nature of supervision:
  Principal Supervisor, Oct 2016
  
  Title of thesis:
  Understanding the impact of classroom noise on children’s learning and well-being, and its modulation by executive functions
  
  Awarded:
  2020
Teaching

Teaching modules
- Brain and Cognitive Development (PSYC019H6)
- Academic Skills for PG Students (SC12001H7)
- Introduction to Developmental Psychology (SCPS203H4)
- Child Development in a Global Context (SCPS220H7)
Publications
Publications
Article
- Serino, Giulia and Mareschal, Denis and Scerif, G. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2024) Playing hide and seek: contextual regularity learning develops between 3 and 5 years of age. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 238 (105795), ISSN 0022-0965.
- Massonnie, Jessica and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2022) Individual differences in dealing with classroom noise disturbances. Mind, Brain, and Education 16 (3), pp. 252-262. ISSN 1751-2271.
- Massonnie, Jessica and Frasseto, P. and Ng-Knight, T. and Gilligan-Lee, K. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Mareschal, Denis (2022) Children’s effortful control skills, but not their prosocial skills, relate to their reactions to classroom noise. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19 (14), pp. 8815. ISSN 1660-4601.
- De Mooij, Susanne and Dumontheil, Iroise and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Raijmakers, M.E.J. and van der Maas, H.L.J. (2022) Post-error slowing: large scale study in an online learning environment for practising mathematics and language. Developmental Science 25 (2), pp. e13174. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Massonnie, Jessica and Frasseto, P. and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2022) Learning in noisy classrooms: children’s reports of annoyance and distraction from noise are associated with individual differences in mind-wandering and switching skills. Environment & Behavior 54 (1), pp. 58-88. ISSN 0013-9165.
- Tierney, Adam and Cardona Gomez, J. and Fedele, O. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2021) Reading ability in children relates to rhythm perception across modalities. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 210 (105196), ISSN 0022-0965.
- Chere, Brittney and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2021) The negative impact of noise on adolescents’ executive function: an online study in the context of home-learning during a pandemic. Frontiers in Psychology ISSN 1664-1078.
- Amso, D. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2021) A multiple-memory systems framework for examining attention and memory interactions in infancy. Child Development Perspectives 15 (2), pp. 132-138. ISSN 1750-8592.
- De Mooij, Susanne and Raijmakers, M.E.J. and Dumontheil, Iroise and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and van der Maas, H.L.J. (2021) Error detection through mouse movement in an online adaptive learning environment. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 37 (1), pp. 242-252. ISSN 0266-4909.
- Broadbent, Hannah and Osborne, Tamsin and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2020) Are two cues always better than one? The role of multiple intra-sensory cues compared to multi-cross-sensory cues in children’s incidental category learning. Cognition 199 (104202), ISSN 0010-0277.
- Broadbent, Hannah and Osborne, Tamsin and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Mareschal, Denis (2020) Touch and look: the role of visual-haptic cues for categorical learning in children. Infant and Child Development 29 (2), pp. e2168. ISSN 1099-0917.
- Anwyl-Irvine, A.L. and Massonnié, Jessica and Flitton, A. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Evershed, J. (2020) Gorilla in our midst: an online behavioral experiment builder. Behavior Research Methods 52, pp. 388-407. ISSN 1554-3528.
- de Mooij, Susanne M.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Raijmakers, M. and van der Maas, H.L.J. and Dumontheil, Iroise (2019) Should online maths learning environments be tailored to individuals’ cognitive profiles?. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 191, pp. 104730. ISSN 0022-0965.
- Werchen, D.M. and Lynn, A. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Amso, D. (2019) The emergence of object-based visual attention in infancy: a role for family socioeconomic status and competing visual features. Infancy 24 (5), pp. 752-767. ISSN 1532-7078.
- Massonnié, Jessica and Rogers, Cathy Jane and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2019) Is classroom noise always bad for children? The contribution of age and selective attention to creative performance in noise.. Frontiers in Psychology ISSN 1664-1078.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Rea, M. and Osborne, Tamsin and White, H. and Mareschal, Denis (2019) Do cues from multiple modalities support quicker learning in primary school children?. Developmental Psychology 55 (10), pp. 2048-2059. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Broadbent, H. and Osborne, Tamsin and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2018) Withstanding the test of time: multisensory cues improve the delayed retention of incidental learning. Developmental Science 22 (1), pp. e12726. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Peng, A. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Mareschal, Denis (2018) Task switching costs in preschool children and adults. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 172, pp. 59-72. ISSN 0022-0965.
- Peng, Anna and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Mareschal, Denis (2018) Information processes of task-switching and modality-shifting across development. PLoS One 13 (6), pp. e0198870. ISSN 1932-6203.
- Xiao, N.G. and Wu, R. and Quinn, P.C. and Liu, S. and Tummeltshammer, K.S. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Ge, L. and Pascalis, O. and Lee, K. (2018) Infants rely more on gaze cues from own-race than other-race adults for learning under uncertainty. Child Development 89 (3), pp. e229-e244. ISSN 0009-3920.
- Broadbent, Hannah and White, Hayley and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2018) Incidental learning in a multisensory environment across childhood. Developmental Science 21 (2), pp. e12554. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Saffran, J. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2018) Infant statistical learning. Annual Review of Psychology 69, pp. 181-203. ISSN 0066-4308.
- Broadbent, Hannah and Osborne, Tamsin and Rea, Michaela and Peng, Anna and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2018) Incidental category learning and cognitive load in a multisensory environment across childhood. Developmental Psychology 54 (6), pp. 1020-1028. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Tummeltshammer, K. and Amso, D. and French, R. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2017) Across space and time: infants learn from backward and forward visual statistics. Developmental Science 20 (5), pp. e12474. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Jeste, S.S. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Senturk, D. and Hasenstab, K. and Sugar, C. and Kupelian, C. and Baker, E. and Sanders, A.J. and Shimizu, C. and Norona, A. and Paparella, T. and Freeman, S.F.N. and Johnson, S.P. (2015) Electrophysiological evidence of heterogeneity in visual statistical learning in young children with ASD. Developmental Science 18 (1), pp. 90-105. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Tummeltshammer, K.S. and Mareschal, Denis and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2014) Infants' selective attention to reliable visual cues in the presence of salient distractors. Child Development 85 (5), pp. 1981-1994. ISSN 0009-3920.
- Tummeltshammer, Kristen S. and Wu, Rachel and Sobel, D.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2014) Infants track the reliability of potential informants. Psychological Science 25 (9), pp. 1730-1738. ISSN 0956-7976.
- Papageorgiou, Kostas A. and Smith, Tim J. and Wu, Rachel and Johnson, Mark H. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Ronald, Angelica (2014) Individual differences in infant fixation duration relate to attention and behavioral control in childhood. Psychological Science 25 (7), pp. 1371-1379. ISSN 0956-7976.
- Wu, Rachel and Tummeltshammer, Kristen S. and Gliga, Teodora and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2014) Ostensive signals support learning from novel attention cues during infancy. Frontiers in Psychology 5, ISSN 1664-1078.
- Barker, Edwards D. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Ng, J. and Jensen, S.K.G. (2013) Prenatal maternal depression symptoms and nutrition, and child cognitive function. The British Journal of Psychiatry 203 (6), pp. 417-421. ISSN 0007-1250.
- Tummeltshammer, K.S. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2013) Learning to look: probabilistic variation and noise guide infants' eye movements. Developmental Science 16 (5), pp. 760-771. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Richardson, D.C. and Wu, Rachel and Johnson, S.P. (2012) The importance of "what": infants use featural information to index events. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 113 (3), pp. 430-439. ISSN 0022-0965.
- Richardson, D.C. and Street, C.N.H. and Tan, J.Y.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Hoover, M.A. and Ghane Cavanaugh, A. (2012) Joint perception: gaze and social context. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 6, ISSN 1662-5161.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Wagner, J.B. and Swan, Kristen A. and Johnson, S.P. (2012) Sound support: intermodal information facilitates infants’ perception of an occluded trajectory. Infant Behavior and Development 35 (1), pp. 174-178. ISSN 0163-6383.
- Sobel, D.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2012) The influence of social information on children's statistical and causal inferences. Advances In Child Development and Behavior 43, pp. 321-350. ISSN 0065-2407.
- Wu, Rachel and Gopnik, A. and Richardson, D.C. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2011) Infants learn about objects from statistics and people. Developmental Psychology 47 (5), pp. 1220-1229. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Dale, R. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Richardson, D.C. (2011) The dynamics of reference and shared visual attention. Frontiers in Psychology 2 (355), ISSN 1664-1078.
- Wu, Rachel and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2010) No two cues are alike: depth of learning during infancy is dependent on what orients attention. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 107 (2), pp. 118-136. ISSN 0022-0965.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Slemmer, J.A. and Richardson, D.C. and Johnson, S.P. (2007) Location, location, location: development of spatiotemporal sequence learning in infancy. Child Development 78 (5), pp. 1559-1571. ISSN 0009-3920.
- Richardson, D.C. and Dale, R.A.C. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2007) The art of conversation is co-ordination: common ground and the coupling of eye movements during dialogue. Psychological Science 18 (5), pp. 407-413. ISSN 0956-7976.
- Sobel, D.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2007) Bayes nets and babies: infants’ developing statistical reasoning abilities and their representation of causal knowledge. Developmental Science 10 (3), pp. 298-306. ISSN 1363-755x.
- Sobel, D.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2006) Blickets and babies: the development of causal reasoning in toddlers and infants. Developmental Psychology 42 (6), pp. 1103-1115. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Richardson, D.C. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2004) Multimodal events and moving locations: eye movements of adults and 6-month-olds reveal dynamic spatial indexing. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 133 (1), pp. 46-62. ISSN 0096-3445.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Cruess, L.M. and Diamond, A. (2003) Helping children apply their knowledge to their behavior on a dimension-switching task. Developmental Science 6 (5), pp. 449-467. ISSN 1363-755X.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Diamond, A. (2003) Sorting between theories of perseveration: performance in conflict tasks requires, attention, and inhibition. Developmental Science 6 (5), pp. 474-476. ISSN 1363-755X.
- Diamond, A. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Amso, D. (2002) Conditions under which young children can hold two rules in mind and inhibit a prepotent response. Developmental Psychology 38 (3), pp. 352-362. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Slemmer, J.A. and Johnson, S.P. (2002) Visual statistical learning in infancy: evidence for a domain general learning mechanism. Cognition 83 (2), pp. B35-B42. ISSN 0010-0277.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Slemmer, J.A. and Johnson, S.P. (2002) Visual statistical learning in infancy: evidence of a domain general learning mechanism. Cognition 83 (2), pp. B35-B42. ISSN 0010-0277.
- Canfield, R.L. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2001) Infant cortical development and the prospective control of saccadic eye movements. Infancy 2 (2), pp. 197-211. ISSN 1525-0008.
- Diamond, A. and Churchland, A. and Cruess, L.M. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (1999) Early developments in the ability to understand the relation between stimulus and reward. Developmental Psychology 35 (6), pp. 1507-1517. ISSN 0012-1649.
- Jacques, S. and Zelazo, P.D. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Sencesen, T.K. (1999) Rule selection and rule execution in preschoolers: an error-detection approach. Developmental Psychology 35 (3), pp. 770-780. ISSN 0012-1649.
Book Section
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2019) Learning in infancy. In: The Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Development. Wiley. ISBN 9781119161899.
- Wu, Rachel and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2012) Learning (to Learn) from spatial attention cues during infancy. In: Miyake, N. and Peebles, D. and Cooper, Richard P. (eds.) Proceedings of the 34th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. Austin, Texas, USA: Cognitive Science Society. pp. 1161-1166. ISBN 9780976831884.
- Wu, Rachel and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Swan, Kristen A. and Gliga, Teodora (2011) Infants use social signals to learn from unfamiliar referential cues. In: Carlson, L. and Hoelscher, C. and Shipley, T.F. (eds.) Expanding the Space of Cognitive Science: Proceedings of the 33rd Annual Conference of the Cognitive cience Society. Austin, Texas, USA: Cognitive Science Society. ISBN 9780976831877.
- Wu, Rachel and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Swan, Kristen A. and Gliga, Teodora (2011) Social signals scaffold learning from novel cues during infancy. In: Kokinov, B. and Karmiloff-Smith, Annette and Nersessian, N. (eds.) European Perspectives on Cognitive Science. Sofia, Bulgaria: New Bulgarian University Press. ISBN 9789545356605.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2010) Altogether now: learning through multiple sources. In: Johnson, S.P. (ed.) Neoconstructivism: The new science of cognitive development. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195331059.
- Wu, Rachel and Gopnik, A. and Richardson, D.C. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. (2010) Social cues support learning about objects from statistics in infancy. In: Ohlsson, S. and Catrambone, R. (eds.) Cognition in Flux: Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. Austin, Texas, USA: Cognitive Science Society. pp. 1228-1233. ISBN 9780976831860.
- Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Slemmer, J.A. and Johnson, S.P. (2001) Visual statistical learning in infants. In: Moore, J.D. and Stenning, K. (eds.) Proceedings of the Twenty-third Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society. London, UK: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. ISBN 9780805841520.
Conference Item
- Wu, Rachel and Yu, C. and Smith, L.B. and Kirkham, Natasha Z. and Yurovsky, D. (2011) Model selection for eye movements: assessing the role of attentional cues in infant learning. 12th Neural Computation and Psychology Workshop, 2011, London, UK

Professor Natasha Kirkham

Overview

Biography

Highlights

Qualifications

Web profiles

Professional memberships

ORCID

Research

Research projects

The role of noise in the development of attention

Noise and Learning!

Rhythm and prosocial behaviour

Distraction and Attention

Lab information

Supervision and teaching

Supervision

Current doctoral researchers

HELEN GRIMSHAW

JUDIT SEBOK-ROSE

LINDA CERMINARA

Doctoral alumni since 2013-14

BRITTNEY CHERE

SUSANNE DE MOOIJ

JESSICA MASSONNIE

Teaching

Teaching modules

Publications

Article

Book Section

Conference Item