Susan Carey
Also known as Susan E. Carey
Susan Carey is a Harvard psychologist known for her work on conceptual change in childhood. In 1978 she and Elsa Bartlett coined the term fast mapping. In 2009 she became the first woman to win the Rumelhart Prize, which honors David Rumelhart's contributions to cognitive science and artificial intelligence. The 2020 Atkinson Prize in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences recognized her theory of conceptual change. As of October 2026 she is an emeritus professor of psychology at Harvard University.
- Now at
- Harvard University
- Works
- 275
- Citations
- 39,580
- h-index
- 94
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 14 October 2026.
Timeline
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1964–1971
Radcliffe BA and a Fulbright
She graduates from Radcliffe with a B.A. in 1964 and receives a Fulbright Fellowship to London University in 1965. In 1971 she earns a Harvard Ph.D.
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1972–1996
Professor at MIT
At MIT she starts as an assistant professor in 1972 and becomes a full professor in 1984.
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1978
The term fast mapping
Together with Elsa Bartlett, she coins the term fast mapping in 1978.
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1985
Conceptual change in childhood
Her book Conceptual Change in Childhood appears with MIT Press in 1985.
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2001
The Laboratory for Developmental Studies
In 2001 she joins the Harvard faculty after teaching at MIT and New York University, and she helps start the Laboratory for Developmental Studies.
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2009
First woman to win Rumelhart Prize
She wins the 2009 David E. Rumelhart Prize, the first woman to receive it. The prize honors David Rumelhart, whose contributions spanned cognitive science and artificial intelligence.
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2020
An Atkinson Prize for conceptual change
In 2020 she receives the Atkinson Prize in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences for her theory of conceptual change.
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As of October 2026
Professor emeritus at Harvard
She is an emeritus professor of psychology at Harvard University.
Sources and credits
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