College of Education and Human Development

Institute of Child Development

People

Melissa Koenig

  • Pronouns: she/her/hers

  • Professor, Director of Graduate Studies

My research focuses on the factors that constrain and support children's social and testimonial learning. Together, my lab studies various aspects of trust, cultural learning, memory, language and cognitive development.

    DEGREES

    PhD, 2002, University of Texas at Austin

      AREAS OF INTEREST

      Cognitive development, culture, cross-culture, early childhood, language development, learning, reflective practice, theory of mind, relationships (peer, parent, and romantic partner), social and emotional development, 

        BIOGRAPHY

        My research focuses on the factors that constrain and support children's social and testimonial learning.  Together, my lab studies various aspects of trust, cultural learning, memory,  language and cognitive development.  As a first-generation college student, I lead a collaborative lab, support students’ navigation of the hidden curriculum and enjoy supporting students on their own unique trajectory. My lab group does work that is collaborative, interdisciplinary, multi-method with a cultural lens that aims to advance the field of developmental science.

        Selected Quote

        “For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.”
        ― Thich Nhat Hanh, 

        Lab

        Early Language and Experience Lab

        Advising expectations and availability

        For Ph.D. program applicants: If you are indicating me as a faculty member you’re interested in working with on your application, I prefer that you contact me prior to the application deadline of Dec. 1.

        If you are a prospective graduate student who is interested in working with Dr. Koenig, click here to review her advising expectations. The document outlines what you can expect from Dr. Koenig as an advisor/mentor and provides an overview of Dr. Koenig's expectations of students. 

        Please note that for the 2025 admissions cycle Dr. Koenig is looking to take on new Ph.D. students as their primary advisor.

          PUBLICATIONS

          Afshordi, Li & Koenig (2024). Trusting information from friends: Adults expect it but preschoolers do not.   Developmental Psychology

          Li, DeAngelis, Glaspie & Koenig (2024). The collaborative nature of testimonial learning. Topics in Cognitive Science 16 (2), 241.

          DeAngelis, Ridge, Gelman, Reyes-Jaquez & Koenig, (2023).  Understanding the value of telescopic testimony: With age, a predominantly White Midwestern sample of children credits knowledge to speakers whose statements go beyond the evidence.  Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 231.

          Brown, Ng, Lisle, Koenig, Sannes, Rogosch, & Cicchetti (2023).  Mind-mindedness in a high-risk sample: Differential benefits for developmental outcomes based on child maltreatment. Developmental psychology 59 (6), 1126.

          Li & Koenig (2023). Understanding the role of testimony in children’s moral development: Theories, controversies, and implications. Developmental Review, 67, 1010.

          Pesch & Koenig, (2023). Trust matters: measuring and identifying a role for epistemic and interpersonal trust in preschoolers’ learning from teachers.  Early Education and Development, 34 (1), 27. 

          Pesch, Ridge, Suárez, McMyler, & Koenig (2022). Evaluations of epistemic and practical reasons for belief in a predominantly White US sample of preschoolers.   Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 223

          Koenig, Li & McMyler (2022), Interpersonal trust in children's testimonial learning, Mind & Language 37 (5), 955-974.

          Reyes-Jaquez & Koenig (2022), Greasing (small) palms: Early rejection of bribery, Child Development, 93 (5). 

          Awiszus, Koenig, & Vaisarova (2022), Parenting Styles and Their Effect on Child Development and Outcomes,  Journal of Student Research 11 (3) 7.

          Li, Stephens Hoff, & Koenig (2022), Children’s attributions of moral and epistemic virtue: Effects on learning and memory.   Developmental Psychology, 58 (6), 1114.

          Li & Koenig, (2022). The roles of group membership and social exclusion in children’s testimonial learning, JECP, 216.

          Reyes-Jaquez & Koenig (2021), The development of a morality against power abuse: The case of bribery.   Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 150 (11), 2362.

           Souza, S Suárez, & Koenig (2021), Selective trust and theory of mind in Brazilian children: Effects of socioeconomic background.  Journal of Cognition and Development, 22 (2), 169-184           

          Suárez & Koenig (2021), Learning from “thinkers”: Parent epistemological understanding predicts individual differences in children’s judgments about reasoners.  Child development 92 (2), 715-73

          Suarez, S., & Koenig, M. A., (2021).  Good Thinking:  Parent epistemological understanding predicts individual differences in children’s judgments about others’ reasoning.  Child Development. 

          Li, P. H., & Koenig, M. A., (2020). Children’s Evaluations of Informants and their Surprising Claims in Direct and Overheard Contexts.  Journal of Cognition and Development. 

          Li, P. H., Harris, P. L. & Koenig, M. A., (2019).  The Role of Testimony in Children’s Moral Decision Making: Evidence from China and United States.  Developmental Psychology, 55 (12), 2603.

          Varhol, A.R., Kushnir, T. & Koenig, M. A. (2019). Preschoolers’ evaluations of ignorant agents are situation-specific . In A.K. Goel, C.M. Seifert, & C. Freksa (Eds.) Proceedings of the 41st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. Montreal, QB: Cognitive Science Society.

          Koenig, M. A., Tiberius, V., & Hamlin, J. K., (2019). Children’s Judgments of Epistemic and Moral Agents: From Situations to Intentions.  Perspectives in Psychological Science, 1-17.

          Pesch, A., & Koenig, M. A. (2018). Varieties of trust in preschoolers’ learning and practical decisions. PLOS One, 13(8), e0202506.

          Schieler, A., Koenig, M. A., & Buttelmann, D. (2018).  Fourteen-month-olds selectively search for and use information depending on the familiarity of the informant but not the learning context.  Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 174, 112-129.

          Pesch, A., Suarez, S., & Koenig, M. A., (2018).  The Development of Trust: Shared Reality in Children’s Testimonial Learning.  Current Opinion in Psychology, 23, 38-41. 

          Harris, P., Koenig, M., Corriveau, K., & Jaswal, V. (2018).  Cognitive Foundations of Learning from Testimony.  Annual Review of Psychology, 69, 251-273.

          Reifen Tagar, M., Hetherington, C., Shulman, P., & Koenig, M., (2017). On the Path to Social Dominance? Individual Differences in Sensitivity to Intergroup Fairness Violations in Early Childhood.  Personality and Individual Differences, 113, 246-250.

          Kushnir, T. & Koenig, M. A., (2017).  What I don’t know won’t hurt you: The relation between professed ignorance and later knowledge claims. Developmental Psychology, 53 (5), 826-836. 

          Doebel, S., & Koenig, M. A., (2016). The Emergence of Logical Inconsistency Understanding in Young Children and its Role in Epistemic Trust.  Child Development, 87 (6), 1956-1970.

          Koenig, M. A., Cole, C., Meyer, M., Ridge, K., Kushnir, T., & Gelman, S., (2015).  Reasoning about knowledge: Children’s evaluations of generality and verifiability. Cognitive Psychology, 83, 22-39.

          Stephens, E., & Koenig, M. A., (2015).  Varieties of Testimony: Children’s Selective Learning in Semantic and Episodic Domains.  Cognition, 137, 182-188.

          Stephens, E., Suarez, S., & Koenig, M.A., (2015). Early Testimonial Learning: Monitoring Speech Acts and Speakers.  Advances in Child Development and Behavior, 48, 151-183.

          Koenig, M. A., Cole, C., Meyer, M., Ridge, K., Kushnir, T., & Gelman, S., (2015).  Reasoning about knowledge: Children’s evaluations of generality and verifiability. Cognitive Psychology, 83, 22-39.

          Stephens, E., & Koenig, M. A., (2015).  Varieties of Testimony: Children’s Selective Learning in Semantic and Episodic Domains.  Cognition, 137, 182-188.

          Stephens, E., Suarez, S., & Koenig, M.A., (2015). Early Testimonial Learning: Monitoring Speech Acts and Speakers.  Advances in Child Development and Behavior, 48, 151-183.

          Sher, I., Koenig, M. A., & Rustichini, A. (2014). Children’s strategic theory of mind. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(37), 13307-13312.

          Hetherington, C., Hendrickson, C., & Koenig, M., (2014). Reducing an In-Group Bias in Preschool Children: The Impact of Moral Behavior. Developmental Science, 17(6), 1-8. doi:10.1111/desc.12192.

          Reifen, M., Federico, C., M., Lyons, K., Ludeke, S., & Koenig, M. A. (2014).  Heralding the Authoritarian?  Orientation towards Authority in Early Childhood.   Psychological Science, 25(4), 883-892.  

          Sera, M., Cole, C., Oromendia, M., & Koenig, M., (2014). Object familiarity facilitates foreign word learning in preschoolers.  Language Learning and Development. 10 (2), 129-148.

          Carlson, S., Koenig, M., & Harms, M., (2013).  Theory of Mind.  WIREs Cognitive Science. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science. Doi: 10.1002/wcs.1232

          Doebel, S., & Koenig, M. A., (2013).  Children’s Use of an Informant’s Negative Moral Behavior: Discrimination versus Learning.  Developmental Psychology, 49 (3), 462-469.

          Koenig, M. A., & Sabbagh, M., (2013).  Selective social learning: New Perspectives on Learning from Others.  Developmental Psychology, 49 (3), 399-403.

          Koenig, M. A., (2012).  Beyond Semantic Accuracy: Preschoolers Evaluate a Speaker’s Reasons.  Child Development, 83, 1051-1063.

          Koenig, M. A., & Woodward, A. L., (2012).  Toddlers learn words in a foreign language: The role of native vocabulary knowledge. Journal of Child Language, 39, 322-337.

          Cole, C., Harris, P. L., & Koenig, M. A., (2012).  Entitled to Trust? Philosophical Frameworks and Evidence from Children.  Analyse & Kritik, 34, 195-216.

          Koenig, M. A., & Jaswal, V. K., (2011).  Characterizing Children’s Expectations about Expertise and Incompetence: Halo or Pitchfork Effects?   Child Development, 82(5), 1634-1647.

          Ganea, P., Koenig, M. A., & Millet, K., (2011).  Changing your mind about things unseen: Toddlers’ sensitivity to prior reliability.  Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 109, 445-453.

          Koenig, M. A., & Woodward, A. L., (2010). Sensitivity of 24-month-olds to the Prior Inaccuracy of the Source: Possible Mechanisms.  Developmental Psychology, 46 (4), 815–826.

          Koenig, M. A. & Harris, P. L., (2008).  The basis of epistemic trust: Reliable testimony or reliable sources?  Episteme, (4), 264-284.

          Pasquini, E. S., Corriveau, K. H., Koenig, M. A.  & Harris, P. L., (2007).  Preschoolers monitor the relative accuracy of informants.  Developmental Psychology, 43(5), 1216-1226.

          Harris, P. L., & Koenig, M. A. (2006).  Trust in Testimony: How Children Learn about Science and Religion.  Child Development, 77 (3), 505-524.

          Koenig, M. A., & Harris, P. L., (2005).  Preschoolers mistrust ignorant and inaccurate speakers.  Child Development, 76, (6), 1261- 1277.

          Koenig, M. A. & Harris, P. L. (2005).  The role of social cognition in early trust.  Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 9, (10), 457-459.

          Koenig, M. A., Clement, F., & Harris, P. L., (2004).  Trust in Testimony: Children’s Use of True and False Statements.  Psychological Science, 15, (10), 694-698.

          Clement, F., Koenig, M. A., & Harris, P. L., (2004).  The Ontogenesis of Trust.  Mind and Language, 19, (4), 360-379.

          Koenig, M. A. & Echols, C. H. (2003).  Infants’ Understanding of False Labeling Events: The Referential Role of Words and the People who Use them. Cognition, 87, (3), 181-210. 

          Koenig, M. A. (2002).  Children’s Understanding of Belief as a Normative Concept. New Ideas in Psychology, 20, (2), 107-130. 

          Gelman, S. A., & Koenig, M. A. (2001). The role of animacy in children’s understanding of ‘move’. Journal of Child Language, 28, (3), 683-701.

          Melissa Koenig