爆料社区

I joined the Cal State San Marcos Psychology Department in 2013. My area of specialization is in social cognitive development. I completed my graduate and undergraduate training at the University of California, San Diego. My research focuses on how children (and people in general) learn to reason about the thoughts and behaviors of others. Particularly, I am interested in how young children learn to judge the reliability of sources who provide information, as well as how children make inferences about the mental states of such sources.

Navigating the Social World

Knowing Whom to Trust: The ability to judge the reliability of sources is of the utmost importance in social life. Because social life requires that we absorb information at a rate far exceeding our ability to gain information firsthand, we often rely on other people to provide us with information about the world. For example, we commonly rely on others to teach us about the existence of microorganisms, events in national history, and even tomorrow’s weather forecast. Children especially, must rapidly acquire a great deal of information about the world, and often rely on other people to teach them such information. Although the transmission of information between individuals and across generation affords us many benefits (both as individuals and as a species) there are also inherent dangers to accepting information from others. As adults, we know to be skeptical of the information we receiver from others, or risk being misinformed or misled. But when do children learn this critical social skill? When do children learn to be skeptical of the information others provide? My research addresses the nature and development of children’s skepticism toward unreliable sources, and particularly, children’s reasoning about deceptive sources. As part of this research program, I have investigated whether children trust sources they have seen be deceptive, what factors influence children’s selective trust, and how this understanding relates to other social and cognitive abilities such as theory of mind and inhibitory control. The central goals of my research are to better characterize the development of skepticism in young children, to identify the factors that inform children’s trust judgments, and to explore methods for improving children’s critical thinking.

Select Publications:

Vanderbilt, K. E., Ochoa, K. D., & Heilbrun, J. (2018). Consider the source: Children link the accuracy of text-based sources to the accuracy of the author. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 36(4), 634-651.

Vanderbilt, K. E., Heyman, G. D., & Liu, D. (2014). . Developmental Science, 17, 443-451. 

Heyman, G. D., Sritanyaratana, L., & Vanderbilt, K. E. (2013). . Cognitive Science, 37, 646–667.

Liu, D., Vanderbilt, K. E., & Heyman, G. D. (2013). . Developmental Psychology, 49, 439-445. 

Liu, D. & Vanderbilt, K. E. (2013). . In M. R. Banaji & S. A. Gelman (Eds.) Navigating the Social World: A Developmental Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press.

Vanderbilt, K. E., Liu, D., & Heyman, G. D. (2011). . Child Development, 82, 1372-1380.

Welcome to the R.O.C.K. S.T.A.R. Lab!

R.O.C.K. S.T.A.R. stands for Research On Children's Knowledge of Social Thinking And Reasoning.

Our main goal is to investigate how children learn about the social world. We conduct interviews with children both on the 爆料社区 campus, and in the surrounding community. You may see us at the San Diego Children's Discovery Museum, or at your local preschool. If you do, stop by and say hello!

Interested in joining the R.O.C.K. S.T.A.R. Lab Team?! Download an application!
Email kvanderbilt@csusm.edu if you have any questions.

Meet the the R.O.C.K. S.T.A.R. Lab Team:

Hi, I’m Rachel! I’m a third-year Psychology major with plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology after graduation, specializing in child development. My long-term goal is to open my own practice where I can work directly with children to support their mental health and emotional well-being. Currently, I’m working as a Registered Behavior Technician, which has been an incredibly rewarding experience. I especially enjoy working with kids and gaining insight into how they think, process, and navigate the world around them. Fun fact: When I’m not studying or working, I love riding my motorcycle through canyons—it’s my favorite way to unwind and enjoy the outdoors.

Kayne O'reilly Collins

Courtney Huggins

Alex Depinto Avilez

Amanda Flores

Mary Fuerte

Merielle Dauz

Mohammad Alkhawaja

Senior Researcher Associates

Reilly Seagren, B.A.

I am currently a graduate student at Point Loma Nazarene University, pursuing a degree in Clinical Counseling to become a Marriage and Family Therapist. I have a passion for working in the ROCKSTAR lab, where I’ve been fortunate to engage with children and their families, gaining valuable insights into children’s social development. I believe that research plays a crucial role in understanding how children grow and develop, and I am excited to contribute to this field while helping families navigate their challenges.

Lab Alumni

Monique Stolmeier, Hunter Montoya, Ruby Cuellar, Tricia Alcid, Linda Carter, Hillary Hartman, Camille McArdle-Hankin, Derrick Ocampo, Donna Phonsane, Kelsie Santoro, Karlena Ochoa, Melissa Gary, Jenny Lagervall, Leann Leite, Samantha Marshall, Bianca Medina, Sarah Ross, Tim Burtnett, Sarah Chaffins, Eileen Lux, Savanah McPhillips, Brian Voss, Lorrie Yates, Elaine Dimopolous, Kayla Pratson, Isabella Scuito, Jennifer Turner, Jayd Blankenship, Nicolette Affre, Brent Allmon, Olivia DePaul, Melissa Dominguez, Holly Gizlow, Jon Hoerr, AJ Vega, Ashley Torres, Carissa Velasquez, Michelle Rios, Priscilla Duran, Kristin Nelson, Rachel White, Karina Solis, Lizmery Vigil, Elaina Mehrabian, Rachel Flowers, Raquel Keck, Jahlan Loche, Keely Lopes, Judith Michel, Soleil Olsen-Corona, Jackie Reyes, Charlene Andreason, Rosa Hunt, Janette Ruiz Mora, Melissa Melchor Botello, Evan Weidele, Sarah Trinh, Pooja Punjabi, Justin Mejia, Renee Pierce, Ashley Mota Ortega, Veronica Hernandez, Kimberly Soto, Janette Mariscal, Jessica Ugalde, Kelly Weber, Emily Esquivel, Maiya Larry, Jennifer Ruckoldt, Kayla Lankford, Sara Valencia, Ashleigh Gradillas, Mathilde Weberg, Lizzy Weems, Nancy Salazar Soto, Giovanna Donadio, Juliana Anaya-Garcia, Jasmine Grigsby, Lexy Coronel, Matt Luetgens, Tanumia Lualemaga, Jessica Anderson, Tania Arceo, Isabell Felipe, Jarwyn Cruz, True Voigtlander, Simone Kline, Natasha Shaghaghi, Devin Ghidella, Anahi Martinez Mendez, Leah Cannon, Ari Brasso, Alexa Alcala, Emily Love Dikitanan...

Lab Alumni have continued on to graduate school at: 

University of Oregon, USC, 爆料社区, CSU San Bernadino, San Diego State, CSU Dominguez Hills, UC Riverside, University of Northern Colorado, Oregon State University, Brown University, University of Arizona, Point Loma Nazarene University, California Baptist University, Alliant International University... and more!

Interested in joining the R.O.C.K. S.T.A.R. Lab Team?! Download an application!
Email kvanderbilt@csusm.edu if you have any questions.

• Who are we?

   We are members of the 爆料社区 R.O.C.K.S.T.A.R. Lab. “ROCKSTAR” stands for Research On Children’s Knowledge of Social Thinking And Reasoning. We are graduate and undergraduate students studying psychological science, human development and child/adolescent development at Cal State San Marcos. Dr. Kimberly Vanderbilt is the director of the ROCKSTAR lab.
   

• What do we do at the museum?

  We help the San Diego Children's Discovery Museum promote STEM education for children and families in San Diego County. We want to help kids and their families learn about science first hand, through science-based games and even real science interviews! And kids can win stickers for playing with us!
   

• What are we studying?

  We’re interested in answering questions about how kids understand and navigate the social world around them. We’re interested in how children learn about people—such as how smart or honest a person is—and how children learn to navigate the complicated social world we live in—such as understanding other’s thoughts and actions, and knowing when to trust or share with others.
   

• How do we learn about kids?

  We play games with kids and ask them questions to learn more about how they think and learn about the world. We may play a game, or read some stories about made-up characters. Afterward, we’ll ask kids some questions about the games or the story characters—but don’t worry, there are no right or wrong answers; we just want to know what kids think! And all answers are always anonymous.
   

• What do we do with the information?

  Once we’ve interviewed a bunch of kids (usually 100-200!), we look for patterns across the responses. Then, we use those patterns to figure out how kids at a particular age (like 4-year-olds) see the world, and how that differs from kids who are older or younger.  Then, we share what we’ve learned with other researchers, teachers, and caregivers. That way, we can all better understand kids’ unique perspective of the world, and how to better help kids learn and grow!

Our Research in the News