Ansley Tullos Gilpin
Associate Professor
Center for Youth Development & Intervention
College of Arts & Sciences

Ansley Tullos Gilpin

Primary Concentration:

Developmental Science

Contact Information:

Office: Gordon Palmer 192
Phone: (205) 348-1932
FAX: (205)  348-8648
E-Mail: [email protected]

K.I.D.Lab Website Link

Courses:

PY 105 - Honors Introductory Psychology (UG)
PY 352 - Developmental Psychology (UG)
​PY 355 - Experimental Psychology (UG)
PY 461 - Child Psychology (UG)
PY 491 - Senior Seminar: Cognitive Dev. (UG)
PY 614 - Categorical Data Analysis NonParametric (G)
PY 648 - Cognitive Development (G)
PY 695 - Teaching of Psychology Practicum (G)

Prospective Students:

  • Dr. Gilpin is interested in receiving applications from prospective graduate students for Fall, 2025!  Please contact her for more information and read about the graduate application process here. Please read application instructions on the Psychology webpage linked below:
            UA Graduate School Application
            Psychology Graduate Application Information
            Psychology Ph.D. Program
  • The K.I.D.Lab currently accepts undergraduate students each semester as research assistants for course credit. For more information, please email her *before registration*. Email early!

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