RESEARCHERS
The laboratory currently employs scientific collaborators who design coordinate and prepare studies within the research parameters of the laboratory with the main research coordinator Prof. Kakia Petinou.
Founder and Director:
Prof. Kakia Petinou – Professor and Head of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Speech Pathology Program, Cyprus University of Technology
Kakia Petinou was born and raised in Agios Dometios, Nicosia, and graduated with distinction from the Pancyprian Kykkos Gymnasium for girls. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master’s in Education degree in Speech and Language Therapy from the University of Georgia, USA, as well as a PhD from City University of New York Graduate Center, NY, USA which focused on speech and hearing sciences. She has taught as a Lecturer in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders of the University of Yeshiva, in the School of Health Sciences of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, USA, and as a Visiting Lecturer in the University of Cyprus and the European University of Cyprus. She spent time as a research associate in the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics (Department of Clinical Genetics) and she has been the research co-ordinator of several funded research projects in Cyprus and Europe. She is a member of the International Clinical Phonetics and Linguistics Association, of the Society for Research in Child Development and of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics (ΙΑLP). She is also a registered member of the Speech and Language Pathologists in Cyprus. Her research work has been published in several scientific journals, while she has given talks in various international conferences. Her research interests focus on the characteristics of early language development and language delay, aiming at the identification of early diagnostic features of chronic language impairment (special language impairment, developmental apraxia, autistic spectrum disorders), as well as the relationship between phonological ability and semantic variability. She is also interested in the development of valid and effective diagnostic tools for the identification of communication problems in pediatric populations, ultimately aiming at intervention and rehabilitation.
ORCID: 0000-0001-6580-5190
Contact: kakia.petinou@cut.ac.cy
Members:
Dr. Christina Nicole Giannikas, PhD, MA, BA, CELTA, Certificate in Online Training, Certificate in Creative Writing
Dr. Giannikas holds a PhD in the field of Applied Linguistics. She is an Education & Research Consultant, an Applied Linguist, a Teacher Trainer, an Online Tutor/Trainer, an EAP/ESP Instructor, Researcher, Materials writer and Editor. She has been working in the field of language education for over 15 years. She is the founder of CG Education & Research 
Consultancy and also works in Higher Education where she lectures courses in Applied Linguistics. Dr. Giannikas has a strong research record in the field and has published in peer-reviewed academic journals, edited volumes, newsletters and conference proceedings.
ORCID: 0000-0002-5653-6803
Contact: christina.giannikas@cut.ac.cy
Personal website: https://christinagian.wixsite.com/christinagiannikas
Dr. Kyriaki Kyriakou – SLP.D., CCC-SLP, Registered Speech and Language Therapist 
Kyriaki Kyriakou holds a doctoral degree in Speech Language Pathology from Nova Southeastern University, FL, USA with a focus in Voice Disorders and Augmentative Alternative Communication. She currently works as a Research Collaborator in a research laboratory of Gallaudet University since 2013 and Therapo Lab of the Cyprus University of Technology since 2016. Her clinical and research interests are in the areas of voice disorders, swallowing disorders, fluency disorders and augmentative alternative communication.
ORCID: 0000-0002-9537-1829
Contact: Kyriaki.kyriakou@cut.ac.cy
Dr. Ioannis Phinikettos – PhD, MSc και BSc
Dr. Phinikettos holds a PhD in statistics from Imperial College London in 2012. He currently works as a statistics research assistant at the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at the Cyprus
University of Technology and as a mathematician in public secondary education. His current areas of research interest are statistical methods in communication and voice disorders.
Contact: ioannis.phinikettos@cut.ac.cy
Despo Minaidou – M.S., CCC-SLP Registered Speech Language Pathologist 
Despo Minaidou is a registered Speech Language Pathologist from Nicosia. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Long Island University and a Master of Science from The Pennsylvania State University, USA. She currently works at the Rehabilitation Sciences Department of the Faculty of Health Sciences of CUT as a Special Teaching Staff.
Contact: despo.minaidou@cut.ac.cy
Maria Irene Vassilopoulou– PhD Candidate
Maria Irene Vassilopoulou is a PhD candidate at the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences
at CUT, under the supervision of Professor Kakia Petinou. She holds a BSc in Speech and Language Therapy from the University of Patras and a MSc in “Neuroscience and Education” from the University of Macedonia.
Her doctoral dissertation, titled “Linguistic Profiles, Genetic History, and Genetic Underpinnings in Simplex and Multiplex Families with Neurodevelopmental Disorders,” focuses on the investigation of the linguistic profiles of children with neurodevelopmental disorders/autism spectrum disorders (NDD/ASD) and speech sound disorders (SSD), in conjunction with their family history and genetic background, in the context of the Cypriot population. The research is conducted in collaboration with the Biobank of the University of Cyprus (biobank.cy Center of Excellence). Since 2023, as part of her doctoral studies, she has been actively involved in teaching undergraduate and postgraduate courses at the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, serving as a teaching assistant under the guidance of Dr. Kakia Petinou. She has participated in national and international scientific conferences and is a scholarship recipient of the Onassis Foundation for the period 2024–2026.
Contact: mt.vasilopoulou@edu.cut.ac.cy
Dr Theodora Papastefanou– PhD, MSc, BSc
Dr. Theodora Papastefanou holds a PhD in Clinical Language Sciences from the University of Reading (UK), an MSc in Speech Difficulties from the University of Sheffield (UK), and a BSc in Speech and Language Therapy from the Universit
y of Ioannina (Greece). She serves as Special Teaching Staff in the Speech and Language Therapy Programme at the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, CUT, where she independently teaches undergraduate and postgraduate courses and supervises students in clinical placements, primarily involving paediatric populations. Her research focuses on the early identification and intervention of children with speech, language, communication, and learning difficulties, as well as the development of evidence-based intervention protocols. She places particular emphasis on bilingual populations and on bridging theoretical knowledge with clinical practice. Dr. Papastefanou has participated in research projects at the University of Reading, University College London, and CUT. She is also a Management Committee member of the European COST Action “Justice to Youth Language Needs” (CA22139). She has authored and co-edited educational and scientific materials and is actively involved in knowledge dissemination through training workshops, collaborations with professional organisations, and community outreach initiatives.
Contact: t.papastefanou@cut.ac.cy