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 early infant development. This research will  help support earlier detection  and intervention for autism spectrum disorder in the years to come!

Our current study assesses infants' social, language, and motor skills through the first 2-3 years of life. Caregivers may receive free developmental feedback and up to $300 for full participation!  Sign up here to be contacted for more information 

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 Scientists

Jessie Fu
Jessie is a Research Assistant Professor at the Early Social Development and Intervention (ESDI) Lab. Her overarching research goal is to understand the neurocognitive processes underlying the emergence and development of socioemotional problems in children.  She uses a multi-method approach to study attention and its development at the behavioral, cognitive, physiological, and neural levels. She obtained her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at the Pennsylvania State University. She completed her postdoctoral training at the Institute for Mind and Brain before joining the ESDI Lab.  

Aaron Beckner
Aaron received his PhD from University of California, Davis in Psychology. He is interested in visual cognitive development as well as how culture, context, and experience shape cognitive processes during infancy. His work has focused on attention, learning, and memory as well as the development of motor and spatial cognitive skills during infancy and early childhood. He is interested in further investigating these processes in infants who are at risk for ASD as well as investigating distinct developmental trajectories in both typical and atypically developing infants.

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 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. ​

Katie Rowland
Katie graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2021.  She studied Experimental Psychology during her time at the University.  As an undergrad student, she worked in the lab as a Research Assistant on the ECG team.  Following her graduation, she joined the team part-time and assists on both the research and the outreach teams.  In the future, Katie hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology.

Clinical Research & Outreach Coordinator

          Elizabeth Dixon

Elizabeth  received her Bachelor of Arts from Columbia International University and her Master’s in Social Work from the University of South Carolina .   As the ESDI Lab’s Clinical Research and Outreach Coordinator, Elizabeth helps connect families to the research while supporting their clinical needs through the process.   She also assists in building relationships with local providers and organizing outreach events for the autism community. 

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).

Tessa Djiko
Tessa graduated from Macalester College in 2018 with a B.A. in Neuroscience Studies. After graduation, she worked in the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota on projects focusing on early autism detection using MRI brain imaging. As a Clinical-Community PhD student, she is interested in improving early autism detection and intervention strategies to be more equitable and accessible for families. Tessa’s favorite aspect of her work is interacting with our participants. So many cute baby smiles!

Undergraduate Research Assistants

Alana Dea

Alana is a junior Public Health major and a Psychology minor. She aspires to receive her M.D.  after graduating from UofSC, and become a pediatric psychiatrist! In the lab, Alana works on the RedCap team, MOIX team, and the Recruitment and Outreach Committee.​

Anastasia Javoris

Anastasia a junior psychology major with a neuroscience minor. After graduation she plans on getting her PhD in clinical neuropsychology and eventually opening her own practice. She currently work as a teaching aide for Autistic children outside of the lab and is a part of the ET team for the lab.

Annah Morgan

Annah is a senior, majoring in Biological Sciences and Experimental Psychology.  After graduating from the University of South Carolina she plans to attend graduate school. In the lab, Annah is currently a member of the MOIX coding team. ​

Ally
​Ramsey

Ally is a senior majoring in Psychology with minors in Neuroscience and Spanish. She is part of the ECG team at the lab. She plans to attend graduate school with the goal of pursuing a career in Psychology.

Allyson
​Halbach

Allyson is currently a sophomore.  She is a BARSC-MD major, which is a dual degree program with UofSC and the UofSC School of Medicine. After medical school, she hopes to work in either obstetrics and gynecology, or surgical oncology.  She is a part of the OIX team.

Eilis
McLaughlin

​Eilis is a senior 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. ​

Elizabeth
​Mays

Liz is a sophomore at the University of South Carolina majoring in Psychology and minoring in Neuroscience. After graduation, she plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in neuropsychology. In the lab, she is a part of the MOIX team.

Emily
​ Schwadron

Emily Schwadron is a junior majoring in Experimental Psychology. In the lab, she is a member of the OIX attention coding team. After graduating from USC, Emily hopes to attend medical school.

Eva
​Armbruster

Eva is a sophomore Biology major with minors in Spanish and Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior.  After graduating, she hopes to attend medical school and is interested in pediatric neurology.  She started in the lab in September of 2021, and works on the MOIX and data entry teams.

Francis Villanueva

Harshitha Visikamalla

Jillian Gulla
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Francis is a senior 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.
Harshitha is a freshman BARSC-MD major which is a 7-year accelerated medical school program partnered with the UofSC School of Medicine. After medical school, she hopes to work in neuroscience. She is a part of the MOIX and outreach team. 
Jillian is a junior Psychology major with minors in Medical Humanities and Neuroscience. After graduation, she intends to pursue a dual PhD and MD degrees with a focus in Neuroscience. In the lab, she works with the data entry and ECG teams.

Layne Scopano

Nilesh Khatana

Marissa Plack
Layne is a junior 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.
Nilesh is a senior Experimental Psychology major with a minor in music industry studies. In the lab he is a part of the eye tracking attention coding team.  After graduation, Nilesh intends to become a licensed counselor with his own private practice.
Marissa is a sophomore Psychology major with a Neuroscience minor.  She currently works on the PIX team.  In the future, Marissa plans to go to graduate school to get a Ph.D. in Child/School Psychology.

Matthew Scharf

Peter Iacobelli

Shireen Kaur
​Matthew is a senior 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 UofSC, he intends on going to medical school in hopes of pursuing a career within pediatric medicine.
Peter is a junior majoring in Experimental Psychology and minoring in Neuroscience. He is a part of the ECG team. He plans to attend graduate school to get a Ph.D. in neuroscience and hopes to pursue a career in Alzheimer's Disease research. 
Shireen is a freshman BARSC-MD major, currently a part of the ECG and Data Entry team. After undergrad and med school, Shireen plans to specialize in either neurology or pediatrics. 

Sirlin Kaur

Sirlin is a senior 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.

Sophia Medley

Sophia is a senior at the University of South  Carolina majoring in Experimental Psychology.  After undergrad, Sophia hopes to attend graduate school in order to become a counselor.  

Waliya Waheed

Waliya is a sophomore majoring in Experimental Psychology. She is a part of the OIX attention coding team. In the future, Waliya hopes to attend medical school and pursue a career in psychiatry.