Overview
The Early Social Development Lab is housed at the University of South Carolina, Columbia Campus, and is a part of the Institute for Mind and Brain. Our team, directed by Dr. Jessica Bradshaw, studies infant development and the early detection of autism spectrum disorder.
​​Currently, we are working on a project which aims to identify a biomarker of attention using heart rate and later use this measure to evaluate associations between attention and the emergence of social-communication skills and autism spectrum disorder. 

Meet Our Team!

Lab Director

Dr. Jessica Bradshaw

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Dr. Bradshaw received her PhD in Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She then completed her postdoctoral work at the Marcus Autism Center, Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Bradshaw has been involved in autism research since her undergraduate work in Cognitive Science at the University of California, San Diego and her post-baccalaureate work at the Yale Child Study Center. Her research focuses on early identification and intervention of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the first years of life. Specifically, she is interested in: 1) quantifying the emergence of, and interrelations between, social behavior, visual attention, and motor skills in neonates, infants, and toddlers, 2) identifying aberrant neurodevelopmental pathways that lead to the emergence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and 3) translating these basic findings to early detection and intervention strategies for ASD.
LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. BRADSHAW'S PREVIOUS RESEARCH HERE​

Research Coordinators

Emma Platt
​Emma graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelors degree in Psychology and certificate in Clinical and Psychological Science. As an undergraduate, Emma worked as a Behavior Technician and discovered her passion to help children with autism and other developmental disabilities. She applied this passion academically and joined the Cognitive Language & Learning Lab where she investigated the development of sustained attention and language in children with and without autism. As a research coordinator, Emma plays a role in recruiting participants, collecting data, and mentoring the undergraduate research assistants. In the future, she hopes to obtain her Ph.D in clinical psychology and continue her research pursuits. 

Amy Vinyard
Amy discovered her passion for developmental research while working towards a bachelor's degree in Communication Disorders from Truman State University. She followed that passion to James Madison University, where she earned a master's in Communication Sciences & Disorders Research. She joined the ESDI Lab in January 2020 with the goal of gaining experience and figuring out her next steps. As a research coordinator, Amy helps oversee the day-to-day operations of the lab. She heads up the ECG editing team as well as supervising data entry and some attention coding. Her favorite part of the job is seeing how the lab members with different backgrounds uniquely contribute to the research. ​

Recruitment & Outreach Coordinator

                  Elizabeth Dixon


​Elizabeth received her Bachelor of Arts from Columbia International University and her Master’s in Social Work from the UofSC with a concentration in Health and Mental Health. Prior to joining the ESDI Lab, Elizabeth provided therapy and clinical support to children in foster care, and to families affected by autism and other developmental disabilities.  
 As the ESDI Lab’s Recruitment and Outreach Coordinator, Elizabeth assists in recruiting participants, building relationships with partners, planning events, and connecting families with community resources. 

Graduate Assistants

Alexis Federico

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​Alexis graduated from Florida State University with her bachelors degree in Psychology in May of 2019. After graduating, she moved to South Carolina where she worked as a research assistant in the Early Social Development and Intervention Lab. This year, she will be continuing her work in Dr. Bradshaw's lab as a graduate assistant while pursuing her Ph.D. in clinical-community psychology. Alexis' research interests include infant developmental trajectories and outcomes, social/language development and motor development

Miranda Foster

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​Miranda graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelors degree in Psychology in May 2018. Before starting at USC, Miranda worked at the Duke University Center for Autism and Brain Development where she investigated novel screening ASD tools in pediatric primary care. She is currently pursuing her PhD in the Clinical-Community Psychology program at USC and is interested in investigating biomarkers in children at risk for ASD and developing new intervention strategies. Her favorite part about being in the ESDI lab is the chance to learn something new everyday (and playing peek-a-boo with participants).

Undergraduate Research Assistants

Christian Brayman

Alana Dea

Abby Spencer
Christian joined the ESDI Lab as a member of the ECG team this past May. He is currently going into his senior year and is pursuing a B.S. in Public Health. Upon graduating this upcoming May, he plans to attend medical school and focus on global health.
Alana is a sophomore Public Health major and a Psychology minor. She aspires to receive her doctorate in Occupational Therapy after graduating from UofSC, and become a pediatric occupational therapist! In the lab, Alana works on the RedCap team and Recruitment and Outreach Committee.
 Abby Spencer is a senior at UofSC and majoring in Public Health with minors in anthropology and counselor education. Her role in the lab is attention coding using eye tracking movements. After college, Abby plans to pursue a career in genetic counseling.

Haley Hirth

Layne Scopano

Alli Granger
Haley is a junior in the South Carolina Honors College majoring in Public Health with a minor in Biology. Haley works day to day in the lab on behavioral coding and helped coordinate the first annual Autism Research and Resource Fair. She hopes to continue her education into medical school and provide care within underserved populations.
Layne is a sophomore at UofSC. She is a Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Spanish double major with a minor in Medical Humanities and Culture. In the lab, Layne is a member of the attention coding team. She loves working one-on-one with the participants and their families and aspires to earn her MD degree and specialize in neonatology.
 Alli is a junior experimental psychology major with a neuroscience minor. She is currently on the OIX Attention Coding Team in the lab. Alli plans to go to graduate school, earn her PhD, and become a clinical neuropsychologist after she graduates.

Kenan Delbridge 

Francis Villanueva

Vince Ylagen
Kenan is a junior majoring in biology.  He is passionate about working within the local community to bring awareness to social development. After graduating from the University of South Carolina he hopes to attend medical school and plans to specialize in orthopedics.  
Francis is a junior majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics with a minor in Creative Writing. He's currently hoping to get his Masters in artificial intelligence or data science, and ultimately wants to help design products and algorithms to make the world a more pleasant place to live. In the lab, Francis is the IT and data management chair.
Vince is a senior at UofSC majoring in Psychology. After graduating, he hopes to become a physician assistant. Vince heads the ECG coding team in the lab and is responsible for evaluating and editing our ECG files. His favorite thing about being an RA at the ESDI Lab is the sense of community and enthusiasm that the team shares.

Elizabeth Weicker

Matthew Scharf 

Eilis McLaughlin
Elizabeth is a senior at UofSC majoring in experimental psychology and neuroscience. She primarily works with
attention coding and data entry in the lab. In the future, Elizabeth hopes to study PTSD and work with veterans.
​Matthew is a junior majoring in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology with a minor in Spanish. Within the lab, he works in the PIX Coding Team  tracking eye movements from participant's visits. After graduating from USofC, he intends on going to medical school in hopes of pursuing a career within pediatric medicine.
Eilis is a junior at UofSC majoring in Biological Sciences with a minor in neuroscience. After graduating, she plans to attend medical school and plans to specialize in obstetrics and gynecology.  ​In the lab Eilis works on the Redcap team and is training to work with the ECG team. 

James Nations

Sirlin Kaur

Alexis Clement
​James is a sophomore in the Honors College at UofSC majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a minor in Psychology.  In the lab, James works with the Redcap team.  In the future, he hopes to attend medical school and pursue a career in Family Medicine.
Sirlin is a junior at UofSC. She is majoring in Biology with a minor in Psychology. After graduating, she hopes to attend medical school. In the lab, Sirlin is a part of the eye tracking team for attention coding.
Alexis is a junior Public Health B.A. major with a minor in Psychology. After graduating, she plans to get her master's in communication and Speech Pathology and become a certified Speech Language Pathologist. In the lab she is a part of the REDcap team. 

Anna Jackson

Anna is a junior at UofSC majoring in Biological Sciences with a minor in psychology. In the lab, she works on the PIX team observing interactions between babies and their parents. Following graduation, Anna plans to attend dental school in hopes of pursuing a career in orthodontics