HIAS Bridges NEXT - Past Members

Mioko Sudo

Research field:Developmental psychology, with a particular focus on children’s social cognition and socialization processes

●What are your current research interests?

I am currently broadly interested in young children’s social cognition, including their ability to stand in other people’s shoes and their ability to empathize with others from diverse backgrounds, as well as how the development of such social-cognitive abilities could be influenced by children’s unique social and cultural environment.

●What do you enjoy most about research?

What I enjoy most about research is the opportunity to pursue answers to questions that pique my interest, and through that pursuit, being able to contribute a piece (no matter how tiny) to the puzzle of understanding human development.

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

To me, research is like a continuous learning journey, involving seeking answers to questions, acquiring new knowledge and skills, and evolving as a thinker.

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

During my undergraduate studies, I had the opportunity to be involved in projects focusing on the language and cognitive development of foreign national children in Japan and Japanese children in the United States. I felt like learning about the unique struggles of such children was like learning about my childhood self since I grew up in multiple cultural contexts myself. My interest in learning about how such children’s struggles could potentially be alleviated served as the trigger for my interest in research.

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

I hope to be able to contribute to the advancement of knowledge on children’s social cognition, and to become able to guide the next generation of researchers in their academic pursuits.