Charles A. Nelson III from Harvard University will deliver the 2014 Spiker Memorial Lecture, “The Effects of Early Deprivation on Brain and Behavioral Development” Friday, April 11, at 3:30 p.m. in C107 Pappajohn Business Building on the University of Iowa campus. The lecture is free and open to the public.

In his talk, Nelson will discuss what happens to children whose postnatal experience violates what we have come to expect as a species. In particular, he will discuss results from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP)—a randomized, controlled trial of foster care as an intervention for early institutionalization.

The BEIP followed 136 children who had been abandoned at birth and placed in various institutions in Bucharest, Romania, along with a sample of 72 children who lived with their biological parents in the greater Bucharest community.

Following an extensive baseline assessment in which the average age of participants was 22 months, half the institutionalized children were randomly assigned to high quality foster care created by the research team and the other half to care as usual (institutional care). The participants were then monitored through the first 12 years of life.

Nelson’s lecture will highlight key findings from this study, including the effects foster care and institutionalization had on IQ, attachment, and brain development.

The Spiker Memorial Lecture honors the memory of Charles Spiker, developmental psychologist and long-time member of the Department of Psychology and the Iowa Child Welfare Research Station. This lecture series was endowed by Professor Spiker's former students and colleagues to bring leading developmental psychologists to the University of Iowa to present a lecture that honors Spiker's commitment to rigorous and innovative research in child development.

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, contact Becky Huber in advance at 319-335-3541 or becky-huber@uiowa.edu.