The Centre for Sign Linguistics and Deaf Studies, established in 2003, focuses on developing interdisciplinary research and professional training in sign linguistics, sign language teaching, sign language interpreting, deaf children’s oral language and sign language acquisition and education.

Established in 2008, CBRC is dedicated to the study of childhood bilingualism and multilingualism in diverse environments and communities with a focus on the development of Cantonese, Mandarin and English.

The centre combines the strength of the two universities to pursue two focus areas of research, namely, the biological basis of language learning and development, and the cross-linguistic study of the spoken languages in the Netherlands and mainland China.

The Language Acquisition Laboratory (LAL), established in 2006, promotes the theoretical study of language acquisition and empirical research, with a focus on the acquisition of the languages and dialects of China.

The Language, Learning and the Brain Laboratory conducts research in experimental linguistics, including language processing, language learning, speech perception and production, computer-assisted learning, neurolinguistics and communication disorders.