Julia Irwin, Ph.D

Julia Irwin's picture
Senior Scientist Haskins Laboratories, Professor of Psychology, SCSU
Haskins Laboratories and SCSU

Education

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, National Institutes of Mental Health Training Grant in Neurobiological Disorder, Yale University Child Study Center, 1998-2001
Ph.D., Child and Developmental Psychology, University of Connecticut, 1998
Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, State University of New York, College at Oswego, 1990

Research Interests

My work assesses the perception and production of auditory and audiovisual speech in typical and atypical language development, including autism spectrum disorders. I use technologies such as EEG/ERP paired with eye-tracking to extend the understanding of the neurobiological, physiological, and cognitive processes that underpin speech, language and literacy development in young children.

Representative Publications

Irwin, J., Avery, T., Kleinman, D., & Landi, N. (2021). Audiovisual speech perception in children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disabilities.  DOI:10.1007/s10803-021-04916-x

Irwin, J., Avery, T., Kleinman, D., & Landi, N. (2019). Audiovisual speech perception in children with autism spectrum disorders. Proceedings from the International Congress on Acoustics.

Irwin, J., Avery, T., Brancazio, L., Turcios, J., Ryherd, K., & Landi, N. (2018). Electrophysiological indices of audiovisual speech perception: beyond the McGurk effect and speech in noise. Multisensory Research, 31(1-2), 39-56. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/22134808-00002580

Irwin, J., Avery, T. Turcios, J., Brancazio, L., Cook, B. & Landi, N. (2017). Electrophysiological indices of audiovisual speech perception in the broader autism phenotype. Brain Sciences. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci7060060

Turcios, J., Cook, B., Irwin, J. Rispoli, T. & Landi, N. (2017). A familiarization protocol facilitates participation of children with ASD in electrophysiological research. Journal of Visualized Experiments, 55941.

Irwin, J. & Turcios, J. (2017). Teaching and Learning Guide for: Audiovisual speech perception: An update and implications for clinical populations. Language and Linguistics Compass. DOI: 10.1111/Inc3.12237

Irwin, J., Brancazio, L. & Volpe, N. (2017). The Development of Gaze to a Speaking Face. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. DOI:.org/10.1121/1.4982727

Irwin, J. & DiBlasi, L. (2017). Audiovisual speech perception: A new approach and implications for clinical populations. Language and Linguistics Compass, 11(3), 77-91  DOI10.1111/lnc3.12237

Irwin, J. & Brancazio, L.. (2014). Seeing to hear? Patterns of gaze to speaking faces in children  with autism spectrum  disorders. Frontiers, Language Sciences. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00397

Irwin, J., Preston, J.L, Brancazio, L., D’Angelo, M. & Turcios, J. (2014). Development of an Audiovisual Speech Perception App for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics. doi:10.3109/02699206.2014.966395.

Irwin, J. & Brancazio, L. (2014). Seeing to hear? Patterns of gaze to speaking faces in children  with autism spectrum  disorders. Frontiers, Language Sciences. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00397.

Mirman, D. Irwin, J. & Stephen, D. (2012) Eye Movement Dynamics and Cognitive Self   Organization in Typical    and Atypical Development. Cognitive Neurodynamics, 6, 61-73.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s11571-011-9180-y

Irwin, J., Tornatore, L.A., Brancazio. L & Whalen, D.H. (2011). Can children with autism   spectrum disorders “hear” a speaking face? Child Development, 82(5) 1397-1403. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2011.01619.x

Supported Grants

2018-2020        Principal Investigator, “Hearing Assessment in Response to Noise Screener (HeARS)”.  Start Preliminary Proof of Concept Fund, Phase I and II. Awarded to Southern Connecticut State University. 

2019-2020          Investigator, “Listening 2 Faces: Improving perception of speech in noise in children with  communication disorders”. Small Business Innovation Research Award (SBIR), National Institutes of Health, Division of Deafness and Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Awarded to Smarty Ears, LLC. 

2014-2021           Principal Investigator, “Neurobiological Signatures of Perception and Imitation in Children with ASD”. AREA Award, National Institutes of Health, Division of Deafness and Communication Disorders (NIDCD).  Awarded to Southern Connecticut State University, subcontracts to Haskins Laboratories and the University of Connecticut. 2014-2017, renewed 2018-2021. 

2011-2014         Principal Investigator, “Neurobiological Correlates of Audiovisual Speech Perception in Children with ASD”. National Institutes of Health, Division of Deafness and Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Awarded to Haskins Laboratories.

2012-2017   Investigator, “Nature of the Speech Code and Reading“  (Kenneth Pugh, PI), National  Institutes of Health, Division of  Child and Human Development (NICHD). Awarded to Haskins Laboratories.