Background: The Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI) has a sustained record of accomplishment of training KL2 Scholars through its Career development, Education and Research Training (CERT) Program. KL2 scholars are recruited from the 3 major research universities in the state: Indiana University, Purdue University, and the University of Notre Dame, which enriches their experience and expands the breadth of translational research. The Indiana CTSI is uniquely positioned to also expand research and training opportunities to include training related to Down syndrome (DS). Career Goals: My long-term career goal is to build a translational research program that integrates insights from basic research in both typical and atypical development and knowledge from the stakeholders in the community to develop measurement techniques that improve the delivery and implementation of interventions. The overall objective of this application is progress towards that goal by determining whether real-time visual experience within home learning contexts is potentially an effective new outcome measurement tool. Research Project: Children with Down syndrome (DS) have a behavioral phenotype that presents with delays in language development that impact all aspects of life. Although children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (autism) are typically characterized with a very different behavioral phenotype, they too often present with language delays. Despite efforts to develop new, effective interventions, progress has been slowed in part due to issues with measurement tools. Dynamic aspects of visual sampling heavily impact the process of language learning in typically developing children. The objective for this research proposal is to determine how real-time visual experience (i.e. sampling) within home learning contexts impacts language learning for children with developmental delays as a first step in determining whether visual experience has potential as a new outcome measure. To accomplish this goal, children with DS, with autism, and typically developing peers will wear head-mounted cameras in their home during regular daily activities. Videos will be coded for patterns of visual sampling. Career Development: This Administrative Supplement to the KL2 Institutional Career Development Award will provide the necessary training required to launch an independent research career that includes a focus on children with DS. Training activities include: immersive clinical experience with DS, advanced training in the collection, processing, and analysis of visual experience data, and continued professional development. Mentorship: An interdisciplinary team from across institutions within the Indiana CTSI network supports training activities within this training plan: Dr. Linda Smith (Indiana University, Bloomington), Dr. Marilyn Bull (Indiana University, School of Medicine), Dr. Mandy Rispoli (Purdue University), and Dr. Chen Yu (Indiana University, Bloomington).
Children with Down syndrome and children with autism often present with language delays that impact their quality of life. Using real-time assessment within naturalistic contexts, this study will examine associations between visual experience and language outcomes. Understanding dynamic mechanisms of language learning is the first step in developing novel outcome measures that reflect functioning in environments important for quality of life for children with Down syndrome and with autism.
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