Researchers in NYU Langone’s Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry are interested in working with pregnant women, their partners, and infants to learn more about pregnancy, parenting, and infant brain development as part of two separate pregnancy studies.

You are eligible to participate if you are at least 18 years old and pregnant or a partner to someone who is pregnant. You are also eligible if you are the parent of an infant younger than 3 months old.

How to Participate in Our Pregnancy Studies

There are two different pregnancy studies that may be a fit for you: The Healthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study and the Neuro-Environmental Study of Fetal Developmental Trajectories (NEST).

Healthy Brain and Child Development Study

The HBCD Study recruits people who are pregnant or who have recently given birth. We hope to learn how early life experiences can shape child development.

Families are asked to participate in activities once during pregnancy and across several visits during early childhood. Study activities include the following:

• surveys about daily experiences
• biological samples like saliva from you and your child
• interactive activities for you and your child
• pictures of your child’s brain (from MRI scans)
• wearable sensors to measure your child’s heartbeat and movement
• physical measurements of your child’s growth

The HBCD Study is the largest long-term study of early brain and child development in the United States. We look for families from all backgrounds to participate in this groundbreaking research. Participants are compensated for their time and travel. Leading researchers in the fields of child development and neuroscience will work with participating families and their children to understand how the brain develops and is affected by exposure to substances and other environmental, social, and biological factors during pregnancy and after birth. What we learn from this research will have lasting impacts on future generations of children. Through participation in this study, you can also learn more about you and your child.

If you’re interested in joining this exciting study, you can learn more at HBCDStudy.org or email us at HBCD@NYULangone.org. We would love to have you and your family be a part of this important research.

Neuro-Environmental Study of Fetal Developmental Trajectories

The NEST Study recruits pregnant individuals in their first or second trimester. We hope to learn how mood, stress, and bodies change across pregnancy, and how these changes may shape early human brain development.

Families are asked to participate in six visits over the course of 18 months. Study activities include the following:

• surveys about daily experiences
• biological samples, such as saliva from you and your child
• pictures of your baby’s brain before and after birth (from MRI scans)
• wearable devices like sleep and activity trackers

The purpose of this study is to learn about early human brain development. We want to know about you, your life, your experiences, and your feelings. We know that you and your baby are tightly connected, so by learning about you, we believe we can get to know more about your baby's current and future world. Through participation in this study, you can also learn more about you and your child.

We are looking for families from all backgrounds to participate in this groundbreaking research. Participants are compensated for their time and travel. If you’re interested in joining this study, you can learn more at neststudynyc.org or email us at NESTstudy@NYULangone.org. We would love to have you and your family participate.