You can register your child in the Subject Database of the Psycholinguistic Laboratory Babelfisch and the Vienna Child Studies of the University of Vienna if you would like to participate in one of our future studies.

Depending on the current study, we will then contact you by phone or e-mail if your child falls into the age group that is of interest for the specific research question. You will then receive initial information about the content and scope of the study and can then decide whether you would like to participate.

The database is subject to the strict data protection guidelines of the University of Vienna.

Our studies usually include an appointment of about one hour (including arrival, play and preparation). The recording, during which we play language input to your child and/or present pictures, takes only a few minutes.

Above all, we want you and your child to feel comfortable with us. Therefor, we first go to our playroom after your arrival, where your child can get used to us while you can ask us open questions about the study. After that, we will go to the testing room, where we will need to make some brief preparations, depending on the testing method used. During these preparations and the execution of the study you are always present, usually your child is on your lap. After the study, we ask you to go with the child once again to the playroom, where any questionnaires on child development can be filled out while your child can play.

In the laboratory we have EEG, fNIRS and eye tracking at our disposal. With EEG and fNIRS, your child wears a cap on his or her head, which allows us to record the brain's weak electrical signals. Eye-tracking uses a sensor to record your child's eye movements.

All of the methods we use are well-tested and completely safe for you and your child, with no risk involved.

If you or your child feel uncomfortable during the study, it can be stopped at any time. Also, if we see that your child is crying or does not want to participate, we will stop the study. It is very important to us that you and your child feel comfortable with us.

A study is usually conducted by a researcher and the research assistant. Here is a current list of staff members.

The methods we use do not allow any individual statements to be made, as the results must first be analyzed statistically. Also, no individual differences are measured, but the mean value over all tests. In our annual research report, however, we provide information about the studies that have taken place and the initial results. The evaluation of some studies can sometimes take several years, so we have to ask for a little patience.

The questionnaires on child development are anonymous, no personal data such as name or address are collected. All test persons receive a test person number, which is assigned to the tests, so that you can also withdraw your consent at any time and we can delete the data.

The University of Vienna also has strict guidelines regarding the storage of data. You can read our privacy policy here.

As a thank you for your participation, you will receive a travel allowance as well as a gift and a participation certificate for your child.

Our Lab is located at the University Campus ("Altes AKH"), courtyard 5, and is accessible barrier-free. Here you can find a map of our location.

Yes, it is, we also conduct studies with adults. If you would like to, please register in our separate database for adults. For further informations click here.