Stephen Camarata Ph.D.

Stephen Camarata, Ph.D., is a specialist in child development and in developmental disabilities such as autism, Down Syndrome and other conditions resulting in childhood speech and language disorders. He is the author of two books, most recently The Intuitive Parent: Why the Best Thing for Your Child Is You and Late Talking Children: A Symptom or a Stage. He received his BA and MA from San Diego State University in Communication Sciences and Disorders, received a Ph.D. in Audiology and Speech Sciences from Purdue University, and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Arizona. He joined the faculty of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1990 and is currently a professor of hearing and speech sciences, professor of psychiatry, and associate professor of special education (at Peabody College). He is also an investigator at the John F. Kennedy Center for Research on Development and Disabilities. His research focuses on assessment and treatment—and neuroscience of speech and language disorders—in children with disabilities such as Down Syndrome and autism; he has published more than 70 articles and chapters on these and related topics. His research has been supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Education, and private foundations. As a clinician-scientist, he also serves pediatric patients with disabilities at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center.