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Lab director
PrOF Saloni Krishnan
Saloni Krishnan is a developmental cognitive neuroscientist whose research focuses on brain differences in childhood communication disorders, such as DLD (developmental language disorder) and dyslexia. Saloni is an Academy of Medical Sciences Springboard Award Holder and an MRC New Investigator. With this funding, Saloni is leading a team focusing on investigating the links between motivation and language learning. Saloni has won several prizes for her research, including the Neil O’Connor Award from the British Psychological Society and the NDAS Mid-Career Prize. She was named a Rising Star by the Association of Psychological Sciences in 2022. Her research has featured on the BBC, the Guardian, Daily Mail, and the Boston Globe. She serves as an editorial board member at Communications Psychology, an associate editor at the International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, and an affiliate editor at the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. She is a committee member of the British Psychological Society’s Developmental section and a member of the UK Young Academy. In these roles, she advocates for a positive, rigorous, and inclusive research culture.
Postdoctoral Researchers
Ziyun Zhang
I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow focused on the neural dynamics of language and communication. My current role in the N-CoDe lab involves leading a neuroimaging study (fMRI) to investigate word learning in children with and without Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). I completed my PhD with Prof. Carolyn McGettigan at UCL, working on how challenging communicative environments, such as online meetings, affect spoken interactions and interpersonal neural dynamics.
Outside of work, I pursue my interest in photography.
PhD students
Hannah Jones
I am currently a first year PhD student with a specific interest in atypical development, especially early invention and supportive measures research for neurological and developmental disorders. From my own experiences with autism and other conditions, I’ve learnt that language research is vital. Language is not limited to education but also socialising with friends, impacting mental health and the ability to reach out for help. I hope in the future to help people as I was once helped. In my spare time, I consume every book within my reach and write as much as can, all while being loved by my dogs and drinking excessive amounts of tea.
Courtney Hooton
I am a PhD student in the LARA lab at Royal Holloway investigating the orthographic facilitation of foreign language learning in children, collaborating with the N-CoDe Lab. My project focuses on the use of written word forms to strengthen foreign word learning in 7–10-year-olds, how this may vary across different languages and how feasible it would be to implement these methods in a school environment. My research is funded by the department via a Teaching Associate studentship- I spend three days of the week working on my PhD and the other two days teaching statistics in the Psychology department.
Outside of work, I enjoy reading, baking and catching up with friends across the country
SAHANA KAMATH
I am a Speech-Language Pathologist and PhD scholar at the Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India, supervised by Dr. Shivani Tiwari and co-supervised by Prof. Krishnan. In my PhD, I investigate early literacy development in preschool children in multilingual educational settings in India, focusing on how linguistic, cognitive and environmental factors shape literacy trajectories. I also have experience using eye-tracking methodologies for the early detection of autism, focusing on gaze-based markers of social and communicative development. Through my work, I aim to advance culturally responsive, evidence-based practices in early childhood education.
Research Assistants
SANA CHUGHTAI
I am a research assistant for the N-CoDe lab, supervised by Saloni. I graduated this summer from the University of Bath, completing a placement year with the Centre for Family Research at the University of Cambridge. Having received speech and language therapy as a child, I’m excited to be working with the lab, particularly focusing on DLD which definitely deserves more research attention! Outside of work, I’m a keen swimmer and beach volleyballer when the weather permits!
Undergraduate/ MSc Researchers
YUNXI LI
I’m a Master’s student in Language Sciences at UCL, where I also completed my undergraduate degree in Psychology. My undergraduate dissertation looked at how situational reading enjoyment relates to eye movements during reading, which sparked my interest in how motivation influences the way we learn and process written language. I’m very excited to further explore this interest in N-CoDe lab. Outside of research, I love reading, cooking with friends and going on long hikes.
SURUTHI ESAICHELVAN
TBA
Nivyan LakHANI
TBA
Lab alumni
PostDoctorAL RESEARCHERS
Dr Desislava Arabadzhiyska (funded by AMS Springboard Award)
Dr Valeria Vinogradova (funded by ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship)
Dr Sonia Singh (funded by MRC PROPEL grant)
PHD STUDENTS
Amrita Bains (funded by ESRC Collaborative Studentship)
Holly Coates McDowall (DClinPsy at RHUL)
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
Darius Parvizi-Wayne (funded by MRC PROPEL grant)
Nilgoun Bahar (funded by AMS Springboard Award)
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Miykael Davis, Emily Todd, Bethany Garvin, Annaliese Barber, Tau Nell