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Welcome to our new ‘Spotlight on children’, a focus on research taking place at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge relating to children and childhood – from health to education, language to literacy, parents to playtime, risk to resilience.

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are more likely than other women to have an autistic child, according to an analysis of NHS data carried out by a team at Cambridge ̽��ֱ��’s Autism Research Centre. ̽��ֱ��research is published today in the journal Translational Psychiatry.

Mothers who ‘connect’ with their baby during pregnancy are more likely to interact in a more positive way with their infant after it is born, according to a study carried out at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge. Interaction is important for helping infants learn and develop.

Latest research combining social and political surveys with objective cognitive testing suggests that “cognitive flexibility” contributes to formation of ideology. ̽��ֱ��study finds correlations between cognitive thinking styles and support for Brexit.

Children as young as seven apply basic laws of physics to problem-solving, rather than learning from what has previously been rewarded, suggests new research from the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge.

A new experiment, launching today online, aims to help ‘inoculate’ against disinformation by providing a small dose of perspective from a “fake news tycoon”. A pilot study has shown some early success in building resistance to fake news among teenagers.   

Psychologist Dr Philippe Gilchrist outlines three simple steps to overcoming 'bystander syndrome'

New evidence shows that a ‘social fact’ highlighting expert consensus shifts perceptions across US political spectrum – particularly among highly educated conservatives. Facts that encourage agreement are a promising way of cutting through today’s ‘post-truth’ bluster, say psychologists.

Study finds people in areas historically reliant on coal-based industries have more ‘negative’ personality traits. Psychologists suggest this cognitive die may well have been cast at the dawn of the industrial age.

Making eye contact with an infant makes adults’ and babies’ brainwaves ‘get in sync’ with each other – which is likely to support communication and learning – according to researchers at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge.