Department Chair

Associate Professor of Psychology

 

Ph.D., University of Denver, 1999

 

Contact Information:

Department of Clinical & Social Sciences in Psychology

University of Rochester

RC Box 270266

Rochester, NY 14627-0266

USA

 

Office: Meliora Hall 492 & 354 (Chair's Office)

Telephone: (585) 275-8712

E-mail: loisa.bennetto@rochester.edu

 

 

Research

 

Dr. Bennetto is accepting applications for graduate students to begin in Fall 2012.

 

My program of research is broadly directed at examining the neurocognitive bases of developmental disabilities, with the ultimate goal of understanding how atypical neurocognitive development relates to deficits in social-communication difficulties as well as everyday difficulties with adaptive functioning. My lab focuses primarily on understanding autism spectrum disorders, but we have also been working to understand other developmental disorders such as Down syndrome, as well as normal developmental processes.

 

Our recent work examines the role of multisensory processing in several domains, including social communication and feeding. Some of our current projects in the domain of social communication in autism examine audiovisual speech perception, hearing-in-noise perception (including both speech-in-noise and music-in-noise), speech-and-gesture production and comprehension, and the role of atypical sensorimotor function in facial expressiveness. Our research on feeding investigates the role of multisensory processing in the development of restrictive food preferences (picky eating) in children with autism. We are interested in understanding the relative roles of sensory functions (including taste and olfaction), behavioral factors (e.g., restricted behavior style, neophobia), and family preferences on eating behaviors.

 

For more information, please visit the Bennetto Lab page.

 

 

Recent Publications

 

• Silverman, L.B., Bennetto, L., Campana, E., & Tanenhaus, M.K. (2010). Speech-and-gesture integration in high functioning autism. Cognition, 115, 380-393.
• Diehl, J.J., Watson, D., Bennetto, L., McDonough, J., & Gunlogson, C. (2009). An acoustic analysis of prosody in high-functioning autism. Applied Psycholinguistics, 30, 1-20.

• Arnold, J.E., Bennetto, L., & Diehl, J.J. (2009). Reference production in young speakers with and without autism: Effects of discourse status and processing constraints. Cognition, 110, 131-146.

• Eigsti, I.M., & Bennetto, L. (2009). Grammaticality judgments in autism: Deviance or delay? Journal of Child Language, 19, 1-23.
• Diehl, J.J., Bennetto, L., Watson, D., Gunlogson, C., & McDonough, J. (2008). Resolving ambiguity: A psycholinguistic approach to understanding prosody processing in high-functioning autism. Brain and Language, 106, 144-152.
• Bennetto, L., Kuschner, E.S., & Hyman, S.L. (2007). Olfaction and taste processing in autism. Biological Psychiatry, 62, 1015-1021.
• Smith, E.G., & Bennetto, L. (2007). Audiovisual speech integration and lipreading in autism. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48, 813-821.
• Kuschner, E.S., Bennetto, L., & Yost, K. (2007). Patterns of nonverbal cognitive functioning in young children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 795-807.
• Eigsti, I.M., Bennetto, L., & Dadlani, M.B. (2007). Beyond pragmatics: Morphosyntactic development in autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 1007-1023.
• Diehl, J.D., Bennetto, L., & Young, E.C. (2006). Narrative coherence of high-functioning children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 34, 87-102.
• Young, E.C., Diehl, J.J., Morris, D., Hyman, S.L., & Bennetto, L. (2005). Pragmatic language disorders in children with autism: The use of two formal tests to distinguish affected children from controls. Language, Speech, and Hearing in the Schools, 36, 62-72.

 

Current and Former Graduate Students

 

• Inge-Marie Eigsti, Ph.D. (2001)
  

     Dissertation: Word Learning and Memory Functions in Young Children with Autism
     Current position: Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut

• Laura Silverman, Ph.D. (2007)
  2-year Project Title: Semantic Processing and Verbal Memory in Adults with Autism
  Dissertation Title: Gesture Comprehension in High-Functioning Autism
  Current position: Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Rochester School of Medicine
• Joshua Diehl, Ph.D. (2008)
  2-year Project Title: Coherence in the Narratives of High-Functioning Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
  Dissertation Title:  Prosody Comprehension in High-Functioning Autism
  Current position: Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Notre Dame
• Emily Kuschner, Ph.D. (2009)

     2-year Project Title: Nonverbal Cognitive Abilities in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders, Non-Autism

     Developmental Delays, and Typical Development
     Dissertation Title: Visuospatial Processing Style in Autism and Down Syndrome: Pathways to Social Functioning

    Current Position: Clinical Psychologist, Division of Neuropsychology, Children's National Medical Center; Assistant 

     Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, George Washington University Medical School

• Susan Lee, Ph.D. (2011, Neurobiology and Anatomy)
  

     Dissertation title: Neural Basis of Audiovisual Integration During Language Comprehension in Autism and Typical

     Development: An fMRI Investigation

     Current Position: Completing medical school requirements for MD/PhD  program (University of Rochester School of

     Medicine)

• Betsy Smith, M.A.

     2-year Project Title: Audiovisual Speech in Autism
     Dissertation Title: Multisensory Integration and Temporal Synchrony in Autism

     Current Position: Clinical Psychology Intern (Child & Adolescent Track), Department of Psychiatry, University of

     Rochester School of Medicine

• Bryan Harrison, M.A.
  2-year Project Title: Simulated Imagery in Autism: Semantic Information in Speech and Gesture During Narrative Production

• Casey Zampella, B.S.

     2-year Project Title:  The Role of Motor Coordination in During Facial Expressions of Emotion in Autism

 

Recent Courses Taught

 

• CSP 570: Clinical Assessment I: Psychometrics
• PSY/CSP 384 and 385: Practicum in Developmental Disabilities
• PSY/CSP 351 and 352: Research in Developmental Neuropsychology

 

Grants

 

CURRENT SUPPORT:

• NIDCD, R01 DC009439 (2009-2014):  Taste, Smell, and Feeding Behavior in Autism: A Quantitative Traits Study
• NIDCD, R01 DC009439S1 (2009-2011): ARRA supplement to Taste, Smell, and Feeding Behavior Grant
• NIDCD, R21 DC011094 (2010-2012):  Cochlear Efferent Feedback and Hearing-in-Noise Perception in Autism (Multiple PI Grant with Anne Luebke, Depts. of Neurobiology & Anatomy and Biomedical Engineering)
• NIDCD, F31 DC010769 (2009-2011): Multisensory Integration and Temporal Synchrony in Autism (Faculty mentor for individual pre-doctoral NRSA fellowship awarded to Elizabeth Smith)

 

RECENTLY COMPLETED SUPPORT (Selected):

• Autism Speaks (2008-2010): Neural Basis of Audiovisual Integration During Language Comprehension in Autism (Faculty Mentor for pre-doctoral fellowship awarded to Susan Lee)
• NIMH, U54 MH066397  (2003-2008):  Neurobiology of Impaired Facial Expression in Autism  (Project PI for STAART Autism Research Center Grant: “Genotype and Phenotype of Response to Treatments of Autism,” Patricia Rodier, Center PI)
• NIMH, F31 MH70119 (2004-2006):  Gesture Comprehension in High-Functioning Autism (Faculty Mentor for individual pre-doctoral NRSA fellowship awarded to Laura Silverman)

 

 

Honors and Distinctions

 

• University of Rochester, Goergen Award for Distinguished Achievement and Artistry in Undergraduate Education, 2000