---

Research Affiliations

Center for Youth Development & Intervention http://cydi.ua.edu/

Research Interests

(In no particular order)

• Imaginative Play – Fantasy Orientation and Pretend Play (children’s tendency to engage in fantastical vs. realistic play) – Funded by Grant #RFP-15-08 from the Imagination Institute
• Executive Functions (inhibition, working memory, attentional shift, etc.)
• School Readiness (Head Start, preschool curriculum, behavioral and socio-emotional predictors of academic success) – Funded by Grant #90YR0075 from the Administration for Children and Families (DHHS)

• Children’s use of Testimony (information from other people) to learn about the world
• Imaginary Companions (mean and nice)
• Children’s understanding of fantasy/reality, including belief in fantastical entities such as Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.  
• Development of religiosity
• Pretend play’s role in early childhood intervention (ASD)

Selected Publications
Thibodeau-Nielsen, R.B., & Gilpin, A.T,  Nancarrow, A.F. (in press) The role of emotion regulation in the relationship between pretense and executive function in early childhood: For whom is the relationship strongest? Infant and Child Development.

Woolley, J. D., & Tullos, A. (2020). Development of imagination and fantasy. In M. Haith, & J. Benson (Eds.) Encyclopedia of Infant and Early Childhood Development, Elsevier Press.

*Farrell, C. B., Gilpin, A. T., Nancarrow, A.F., & Brown, M. M. (2020). Implausible lie detection in early childhood: Exploring self-regulation and social cognition as predictors. International Journal of
Developmental Science, 13, 123-132. 10.3233/DEV-190269

* Nancarrow, A.F., Gilpin, A.T Thibodeau, R.B., Farrell, C.B. (2018). Knowing what others know: Linking deception detection, emotion knowledge, and Theory of Mind in preschool. Infant and Child April 2019 Gilpin 3 Development, 27, e2097. Doi: 10.1002/icd.2097

* Thibodeau, R.T., Brown, M.M., Nancarrow, A.F., Elpers, K. & Gilpin, A.T. (2018). Conceptual Similarities Among Fantasy and Religious Orientations: A Developmental Perspective. Journal of Cognition and Culture, 18, 31-48. Doi: 10.1037/t11215-000

* Brown, M.M., Thibodeau, R.B., Pierucci, J.M., & Gilpin, A.T. (2017). Supporting the Development of Empathy: The Role of Theory of Mind and Fantasy Orientation. Social Development,26, 951-964.doi: 10.1111/sode.12232

* Thibodeau, R.B. & Gilpin, A.T. (2016). The Effects of Fantastical Sociodramatic Play on the Development of Executive Functions: An Intervention Study. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 145, 120-138. doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2016.01.001

Gilpin, A.T., McInnis, M.A., Pierucci, J.M. (2015). The Relationship Between Fantasy Orientation and Emotion Regulation. Journal of Early Education and Development. DOI: 10.1080/10409289.2015.1000716

Barber, A., Saffo, R., Craft, L., Gilpin, A., Goldstein, H. (2016). Peers as Clinicians: Examining the Impact of Stay Play Talk on Social Communication in Young Preschoolers with Autism. Journal of Communication Disorders, 59, 1-15. DOI: 10.1016/j.jcomdis.2015.06.009

Jarrett, M.A., Gilpin, A.T., Pierucci, J.M., Rondon, A.T. (2015). Cognitive and Reactive Control Processes: Associations with ADHD Symptoms in Preschoolers. International Journal of Behavioral Development. DOI: 10.1177/0165025415575625

Pierucci, J.M., Barber, A.B., Gilpin, A.T., Crisler, M.E., & Klinger, L.G. (2015). Play constructs and developmental skills in children with autism spectrum disorder. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 30, 35-43. DOI: 10.1177/1088357614539837

* Pierucci, J. M., O’Brien, C. T., McInnis, M.A., Gilpin, A.T., Barber, A.B. (2014). Fantasy Orientation Constructs and Related Executive Function Development in Preschool. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 38(1), 62-69. DOI: 10.1177/0165025413508512

* McInnis, M.A., Pierucci, J. M., Gilpin, A.T. (2013). Investigating Valence and Autonomy in Children’s Relationships with Imaginary Companions. International Journal of Developmental Science, 7, 151-159. DOI: 10.3233/DEV-130123

Scofield, J. Gilpin, A.T., Pierucci, J., Morgan, R. (2013). Matters of accuracy and conventionality: Prior accuracy guides children’s evaluations of others’ actions. Developmental Psychology. DOI: 10.1037/a0029888

Boerger, E. B., Tullos, A., & Woolley, J. D. (2009). Return of the Candy Witch: Individual differences in acceptance and stability of belief in a novel fantastical being. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 27, 953-970. DOI: 10.1348/026151008X398557

Tullos, A., & Woolley, J. D. (2009). The development of children’s ability to use evidence to infer reality status. Child Development, 80, 101-114. DOI:

10.1111/j.1467-8624.2008.01248.x

* Student Mentored Publication