Research Interests
Open to PhD applications in developmental psychology, educational psychology, psycholinguistics and developmental cognitive neuroscience with a special interest in:
• The measurement of auditory perception in young children
• Early precursors to the development of language or literacy
• Trajectories of neural development for speech and language processing in infancy and early childhood
• Methods for investigating classroom communication
Public outreach & key achievements
- "I'm a scientist get me out of here!" participant and finalist (2011, Welcome Trust Funded)
- Engaged with school children through social media to promote their interest in scientific topics aligned to the Key Stage 3 science curriculum.
- News articles of research published by Science Daily (June 2011), The Wall Street Journal Online (July 2011) and the Association for Psychological Science Blog (Nov 2011).
- British Educational Research Association: 1 of 40 landmark studies in the last 40 years
- British Psychological Society (Chartered Psychologist, CPsychol, and Associate Fellow AFBPsS)
- Member of British Association of Cognitive Neuroscience
- Member of European Society for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
Research students
| PhD area | Examining the Relationship between Reading, Speechreading and Audio-Visual Integration in Individuals with Developmental Dyslexia |
| Name | Tugay Duyar |
| Years of study | 2021- |
| Country | Turkey |
| PhD area | Examining the Impact of Parents on Group Intervention Outcomes for Parents of Children with a Neurodevelopmental Disorder |
| Name | Maria McAleese |
| Years of study | 2020- |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
Alumni: Where are they now
| DClinPsy area | An Investigation into the Nature and Impact of Language and Communication Needs of Looked After and Adopted Children |
| Name | Darren Maguire |
| Years of study | 2018-21 |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| PhD area | Estimating Auditory Discrimination Thresholds in Preschool Children |
| Name | Nicola Gillen |
| Years of study | 2014-19 |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Current Position | Post-doctoral Research Associate, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford |
| PhD area | Investigating the Nature of Auditory Predictors of Reading Development: Learning, Maturation and Behaviour |
| Name | Ciara Laverty |
| Years of study | 2012-2018 |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| Current Position | Research Specialist, The Lego Foundation |