2023-09-18
WEI, Ran
WEI, Ran 魏然
Assistant Professor
Address: Graduate School of Education, Room 431
Email: ranwei at pku.edu.cn
Research and Teaching Interests: developmental/educational psychology, language acquisition, cognitive development, family/social/cultural environment, early socialization, eye-tracking and EEG/ERP research methods
Education:
2016.8 – 2021.5
Harvard University, Graduate School of Education & Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Ph.D. in Education (Concentration: Human Development, Learning and Teaching; Secondary Field: Mind, Brain, Behavior)
2014.8 – 2015.5
Harvard University, Graduate School of Education
Ed.M. (Concentration: Language and Literacy)
2010.8 – 2014.7
Tsinghua University, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures
B.A. (Major: English Language and Literature)
Professional Affiliations:
Since 2023.9
Peking University, Graduate School of Education
Assistant Professor
2021.9 – 2023.9
Harvard Medical School & Boston Children’s Hospital, Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Selected Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles:
[1] Wei, R., Sullivan, E., Begum, F., Rahman, N., Tofail, F., Haque, R., & Nelson, C. (2024). Parental communicative input as a protective factor in Bangladeshi families living in poverty: A multi-dimensional perspective. Developmental Science, E13494.
[2] Xing, J.*, Wei, R.*, Wang, H.*, Hua, Z., Tang, X., Yi, L., Li, X., & Liu, J. (2024). Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder interactively predict children's verbal fluency. Journal of Attention Disorders. (*joint first authors)
[3] Reese, E., Kokaua, J., Guiney, H., Bakir-Demir, T., McLauchlan, J., Edgeler, C., Schaughency, E., Taumoepeau, M., Salmon, K., Clifford, A., Maruariki, N., McNaughton, S., Gluckman, P., Nelson, C., O'Sullivan, J., Wei, R., Pergher, V., Amjad, S., Trudgen, A., & Poulton, R. (2023). Kia Tīmata Pai (Best Start): a study protocol for a cluster randomised trial with early childhood teachers to support children's oral language and self-regulation development. BMJ Open, 13(9), e073361.
[4] Wei, R., Kirby, A., Naigles, L., & Rowe, M. (2022). Parents’ talk about conceptual categories with infants: Stability, variability, and implications for expressive language development. Journal of Child Language.
[5] Tang X., Hua, Z., Xing, J., Yi, L., ..., Wei, R.*, Li, X.*, & Liu, J*. (2022). Verbal fluency as a predictor of autism spectrum disorder diagnosis and co-occurring attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. Reading and Writing. (*joint corresponding authors)
[6] McCatharn, J., Herbert, K., Wei, R., & Rowe, M. (2021). Avenues for increasing parenting knowledge: Interviewing parents about preferred information sources. Journal of Child and Family Studies.
[7] Ronfard, S.*, Wei, R.*, & Rowe, M. (2021). Uncovering the linguistic, social, and cognitive skills underlying processing efficiency as measured by the looking-while-listening paradigm. Journal of Child Language, 1-24. (*joint first and corresponding authors)
[8] Choi, A., Wei, R., & Rowe, M. (2021). Show, give and point gestures across infancy differentially predict language development. Developmental Psychology.
[9] Wei, R., Leech, K., & Rowe, M. (2020). Decontextualized language use during American and Chinese caregiver-child interactions. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 71, 101214.
[10] Wei, R., Ronfard, S., Leyva, D., & Rowe, M. (2019). Teaching a novel word: Parenting styles and toddlers’ word learning. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 187, 104639.
[11] Leech, K., Wei, R., Harring, J. R., & Rowe, M. L. (2018). A brief parent-focused intervention to improve preschoolers’ conversational skills and school readiness. Developmental Psychology, 54(1), 15-28.
Book Chapter:
Rowe, M., Wei, R., & Salo, V. (2021). Early gesture predicts later language development. In A. Morgenstern & S. Goldin-Meadow (Eds.), Gesture in language. Mouton.
Selected Conference Presentations:
[1] Wei, R., Liszkowski, U., Harris, P., & Rowe, M. (November, 2024). What is the baby “saying”? Adults’ interpretation of infants’ gestures. Paper presented at the 49th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development.
[2] Wei, R., Li, J., Wang, M., & Yamamoto, Y. (March, 2023). How Questions Drive Teaching and Learning in European-American and Chinese-American Families. Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting.
[3] Wei, R., Kirby, A., Naigles, L., & Rowe, M. (July, 2021). Parents’ talk about conceptual categories with infants: Stability, variability, and implications for expressive language development. Paper presented at the 2021 International Association for the Study of Child Language Conference.
[4] Wei, R., Leech, K., & Rowe, M. (April, 2021). Decontextualized language in Chinese and American caregiver-child interactions: Similarities, differences, and implications for children’s narratives. Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting.
[5] Wei, R., Kirby, A., Naigles, L., & Rowe, M. (October, 2020). Parents’ talk about conceptual categories with infants: Stability, variability, and implications for expressive language development. Paper presented at the Many Paths to Language Workshop at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics.
[6] Wei, R., Ronfard, S., Leyva, D., & Rowe, M. (March, 2019). Teaching a novel word: Parenting styles and toddlers’ word learning. Paper presented at the 2019 Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting.
Selected Invited Talks:
[1] Wei, R. (August, 2024). Understanding developmental eye-tracking data: The what, why, and how. Liggins Institute, University of Auckland.
[2] Wei, R. (December, 2021). Decontextualized language in Chinese families: Cultural pathways to narrative development. Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London.
[3] Wei, R. (June, 2021). Understanding the role of the home environment in Chinese preschoolers’ language development. Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Oslo.
[4] Wei, R. (June, 2021). Understanding the role of the home environment in Chinese preschoolers’ language development. Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Oslo.
[5] Wei, R. (October, 2019). Decontextualized language in caregiver-child interactions: Cultural patterns and developmental implications. Department of Comparative Linguistics, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
[6] Wei, R. (July, 2019). What is the baby “saying”? Adults’ interpretation of infants’ gestures. The Little World Explorers Lab, Psychological Institute, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
[7] Wei, R. (June, 2019). Teaching a novel word: Parenting styles and toddlers’ word learning. Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures Colloquium, Tsinghua University, China.
[8] Wei, R. (May, 2019). Teaching a novel word: Parenting Styles and Toddlers’ Word Learning. Language Acquisition Seminar, University of Oslo, Norway.
[9] Wei, R. (May, 2019). Decontextualized Language Use During American and Chinese Caregiver-Child Interactions. In Open Seminar: Parent-Child Interaction across Early Development and Cultures, Department of Special Needs Education and Department of Education, University of Oslo, Norway.
Selected Fellowships, Grants, and Awards:
National Natural Science Foundation of China Young Scientists Fund (2025-2027)
Society for Research in Child Development Early Career Travel Award
Harvard Graduate School of Education Doctoral Research Grant
Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies Research Grant
Harvard Graduate Student Council Research Award
Society for Research in Child Development Student Travel Award
Harvard University Marco Polo Fellowship
Ad-Hoc Peer Review Service:
Journals: Child Development, Contemporary Educational Psychology, Developmental Review, Reading and Writing, First Language, Infant Behavior and Development, Infancy, Autism Research, Asia-Pacific Journal of Regional Science, European Journal of Education
Conferences: International Association for the Study of Child Language Congress, Budapest Central European University Conference on Cognitive Development, Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting
Awards and Fellowships: American Psychological Foundation Alma Empowering Minds Scholarship and Mentorship Program, American Psychological Foundation Queen-Nellie Evans Award