Position Title
Professor Emeritus
Education
- Ph.D., University of Minnesota, 1974
Research Focus
Dr. Acredolo's research interests are in infant development with a particular emphasis on early language development. Specifically, her efforts are directed at determining the impact on various facets of development of encouraging young infants to augment their fledgling verbal speech with nonverbal symbols. Such "symbolic gestures" (or "Baby Signs," as they are known more colloquially), can function as words for infants, opening up another channel of communication with those around them. In 1996 this research culminated in a book for parents, co-authored with Professor Susan Goodwyn from CSU Stanislaus, entitled Baby Signs: How to Talk With Your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk.
Dr. Acredolo has served as an Associate Editor of Child Development, as Secretary of the Society for Research in Child Development, and is a Fellow of both the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society.