The training program in language processing seeks to train scientists who can advance our understanding of the cognitive basis of human communication. For predoctoral trainees, the program offers a coherent set of formal courses; advanced topics research seminars, and research training in experimental psycholinguistics and computational modeling. For postdoctoral trainees, the program offers opportunities for broadening skills in preparation for careers in linguistics or cognitive neuroscience. For students at all levels, the program offers broad and balanced training as scaffolding for the development of outstanding researchers. The research of the program faculty spans language acquisition, language production, language comprehension, and reading. This breadth fosters abilities in conceptual analysis and theoretical development across the full range of core components of human language use. The methodological expertise of the program faculty encompasses eye-movement monitoring, computational modeling, event-related-potential recording, and the basic techniques of cognitive research. This range gives trainees the opportunity to attain high levels of skill in designing, implementing, and interpreting experiments using state-of-the-art methods for probing the workings of language processing. Funds are requested to support four predoctoral and two postdoctoral trainees per year. The predoctoral training program demands four years beyond the bachelor's degree. It fulfills the basic requirements for the doctoral degree within the cognitive division of the Department of Psychology, using division options to create doctoral-program plans with a major emphasis on the experimental study of language processing and minor emphases on linguistics, cognitive neuroscience, and reading. The postdoctoral program offers training in language processing as a supplement for doctoral training in linguistics or cognitive neuroscience. The proposed training will take place within a strong institutional matrix formed by the Cognitive Division of the Department of Psychology and the Cognitive Science Group at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. Both settings offer exceptional physical and intellectual resources fueled by a rich tradition of graduate training in psycholinguistics.
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