I am a sociolinguist and psycholinguist with a particular interest in the reclamation of slur words within the LGBTQ+ community, and effects of the same on emotional language processing. I am currently working as a Lecturer in Applied Linguistics within the School of Education, Language, and Psychology at York St John University, a position I have held since 2022.
I completed a BA(Hons) in English Language from the University of Leeds in 2015 (for which I was awarded the Sir Richard Graham prize), followed by an MA (with Distinction) and a PhD in Applied Linguistics from the University of Nottingham in 2017 and 2021 respectively. Prior to joining York St John, I taught on the first year undergraduate linguistics module at the University of Nottingham while completing my PhD, and worked as a Teaching Fellow at the University of Salford, where I taught modules on syntax, morphology, and psycholinguistics.
I am currently teaching Language and Linguistics modules at all undergraduate levels, and at postgraduate level. I primarily teach on modules concerning my two main areas of expertise: language and social identity (LAL4018M 'Language and Society', LAL5005M 'Language, Gender and Sexuality' and LAL6004M 'Language, Identities and Cultures') and psycholinguistics (LAL5009M 'Psycholinguistics'). However, I am pleased to also teach on our first year undergraduate grammar module (LAL4021M 'Descriptive Grammar of English'), and to teach about quantitative methodologies and analysis on our Masters courses (LAL7021M 'Research Methods'). I have previously enjoyed teaching phonetics and phonology modules at both first and final year undergraduate level. Finally, I am responsible for supervising both undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations, particularly those aligned with my research and teaching interests, as listed on this profile.
Courses taught on
- BA (Hons) BSL Deaf Studies and Linguistics
- BA (Hons) English Language and Linguistics
- BA (Hons) English Language Linguistics and TESOL
- BA (Hons) Japanese, Intercultural Communication and Linguistics
- BA (Hons) Japanese, TESOL and Linguistics
- BA (Hons) Korean, Intercultural Communication and Linguistics
- BA (Hons) Korean, TESOL and Linguistics
- MA TESOL
- MRes Language and Linguistics
Modules taught on
- LAL4018M 'Language and Society'
- LAL4021M 'Descriptive Grammar of English'
- LAL5005M 'Language, Gender and Sexuality'
- LAL5009M 'Psycholinguistics'
- LAL6004M 'Language, Identities and Cultures'
- LAL6010M 'Dissertation'
- LAL7021M 'Research Methods'
My doctoral research investigated the impact of linguistic reclamation on the cognitive and emotional processing of slur words within the LGBTQ+ community. As a piece of interdisciplinary research, it combined sociolinguistic and sociological theory (poststructuralism, performativity, indexicality, social identity theory) with psycholinguistic theory (the impact of emotional arousal on language processing, taboo language processing, approach-avoidance motivation) and methods (online surveys, lexical decision and free recall tasks, eye-tracking). I am currently engaged in outputting the findings of this research (please see my publication history), with a view to providing new evidence on the unconscious, emotional effects of linguistic reclamation; introducing the issue of reclamation to the literature on taboo language processing; and contributing new evidence to broader social debates and language policy decisions surrounding the reclamation of slurs.
In addition to speaking at academic conferences (please see my conference history), I have given talks on these topics to reputable organisations such as the British Association of Applied Linguistics and Springer Nature, as well as at public-facing events including Pint of Science UK and Pride in STEM. I have also acted as a consultant academic expert for an article published by VICE UK on bisexual people's reclamation of homophobic slurs.
Recent publications
I am an active member of the School Quality Panel for the School of Education, Language and Psychology (which approves all module and programme amendments and quality control procedures across the School). I also sit on my School's Ethics Board (reviewing staff and student research ethics applications), and chair the Language and Linguistics Student Colloquium Committee (organising a series of fortnightly guest lectures within languages and linguistics, exclusively for our students).
Beyond York St John, I am a member of the UKRI Peer Review College, and have also reviewed for the journals 'Cognition', 'Language in Society', and 'Journal of Homosexuality'. I am a member of the British Association of Applied Linguistics (BAAL), and am a member of their Language, Gender and Sexuality Special Interest Group. In 2023, I achieved Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.
