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Emily Goodacre

Emily Goodacre

Research Associate

Qualifications

  • PhD in Education, University of Cambridge
  • MPhil in Social and Developmental Psychology, University of Cambridge
  • BSc in Early Childhood and Special Education, New York University

Memberships/Professional Bodies

Personal profile

Emily is a Research Associate at PEDAL. Her current research examines the state of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) toys in the early years, exploring the opportunities and risks of GAI toys with a focus on children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Emily previously completed her PhD in the Faculty with PEDAL, researching children's play communication and early relationships. Her research focused on young children’s conversations with their friends and peers during play activities, as well as fathers’ experiences of play and book sharing with their infants.

She has also worked at Anna Freud evaluating interventions aiming to improve young people’s mental health and reduce violence.

Academic Area/Links

  • Play and Communication Lab (PacLab)
  • Centre for Research on Play in Education, Development, and Learning (PEDAL)

Research Topics

  • Developmental psychology
  • Play in early childhood
  • Children’s relationships
  • Communication
  • Perspectives on play

Current Research Project(s)

  • Emily is currently a Research Associate on the “GAI and Early Childhood Development” project with Professor Jenny Gibson.

Goodacre, E.J., Fink, E., Ramchandani, P.G., & Gibson, J. (2024). Communication with friends and non-friend peers: An examination of dyadic connectedness across two contexts [Pre-print]. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/jvx5c 

Goodacre, E.J., Fink, E., Ramchandani, P., & Gibson, J. L. (2023). Building connections through play: Influences on children's connected talk with peers. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 41(3), 203-226. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12443 

Graber, K.M., Byrne, E.M., Goodacre, E.J., Kirby, N., Kulkarni, K., O'Farrelly, C., & Ramchandani, P.G. (2021). A rapid review of the impact of quarantine and restricted environments on children's play and the role of play in children's health. Child: Care, health and development, 47(2), 143-153. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12832