Brief Bio
Language development. My early research concentrated on comparisons between sign and spoken language development and my PhD described this with narrative skills. In the first studies I used spontaneous, longitudinal language samples from 2 families of native signers (deaf children of deaf parents). During this period I co-edited the IASCL volume in 2002 with Bencie Woll on sign acquisition. I then moved on to look at the effects of different experiences of learning language i.e. being born to deaf and hearing parents. Then my work on language development became more experimental. I have studied language impairment in signers of BSL, gestures in people with Aphasia and the learning of BSL in hearing adults. In the work on language impairments in signing and gestures the research looked at common and differing patterns of breakdown. The early work on hearing people learning sign kicked off when I worked with Neil Smith at UCL and how Christopher the language savant would learn BSL and this was published in the Cambridge volume 'The signs of the savant'. The most recent research question is to do with the changes in how language is being used by deaf children. The research question now is why there is so much variability in how completely deaf children learn spoken language. Our latest project is categorising groups of young deaf children with Cochlear Implant to see if their delays in spoken language development are explained by environment, general cognitive-neurological deficits or a language learning impairment.
Click here for an interview by IASCL on language development
Language and Cognition. A popular topic is the complex relationship between language and cognitive development. I have looked at this so far in relation to Theory of Mind and now with the development of Executive Functions. A common theme is emerging, linked to the quality of early interaction (communication) and its role in setting up language structures. Also that the relationship between language and cognition changes over development. The most recent articulation of that idea is a paper in Infant behavior & development in 2021 and a chapter with Matt Dye (2019). Coming full circle I edited the IASCL volume in 2020 on this topic as a festschrift for Bencie Woll
Here is a interview on deaf children's cognitive development (Spanish) https://www.uoc.edu/portal/es/news/entrevistes/2014/gary-morgan.html
Gesture-sign interface. In other areas I am investigating how children learn about iconicity and gesture. Linked to this last question I have explored how signed languages have evolved from co-speech gesture and what role language development (in adults and children) has played during this transition. I led an international project looking at how hearing adults lean signing and what role gesture plays in this.
A lot of things happened during 2005-2015 because of ESRC funding to run a research centre. Click here - to go to the DCAL research centre which was set up between Bencie Woll, Ruth Campbell, Gabriella Vigliocco, Mairead MacSweeney and Gary Morgan
Language development. My early research concentrated on comparisons between sign and spoken language development and my PhD described this with narrative skills. In the first studies I used spontaneous, longitudinal language samples from 2 families of native signers (deaf children of deaf parents). During this period I co-edited the IASCL volume in 2002 with Bencie Woll on sign acquisition. I then moved on to look at the effects of different experiences of learning language i.e. being born to deaf and hearing parents. Then my work on language development became more experimental. I have studied language impairment in signers of BSL, gestures in people with Aphasia and the learning of BSL in hearing adults. In the work on language impairments in signing and gestures the research looked at common and differing patterns of breakdown. The early work on hearing people learning sign kicked off when I worked with Neil Smith at UCL and how Christopher the language savant would learn BSL and this was published in the Cambridge volume 'The signs of the savant'. The most recent research question is to do with the changes in how language is being used by deaf children. The research question now is why there is so much variability in how completely deaf children learn spoken language. Our latest project is categorising groups of young deaf children with Cochlear Implant to see if their delays in spoken language development are explained by environment, general cognitive-neurological deficits or a language learning impairment.
Click here for an interview by IASCL on language development
Language and Cognition. A popular topic is the complex relationship between language and cognitive development. I have looked at this so far in relation to Theory of Mind and now with the development of Executive Functions. A common theme is emerging, linked to the quality of early interaction (communication) and its role in setting up language structures. Also that the relationship between language and cognition changes over development. The most recent articulation of that idea is a paper in Infant behavior & development in 2021 and a chapter with Matt Dye (2019). Coming full circle I edited the IASCL volume in 2020 on this topic as a festschrift for Bencie Woll
Here is a interview on deaf children's cognitive development (Spanish) https://www.uoc.edu/portal/es/news/entrevistes/2014/gary-morgan.html
Gesture-sign interface. In other areas I am investigating how children learn about iconicity and gesture. Linked to this last question I have explored how signed languages have evolved from co-speech gesture and what role language development (in adults and children) has played during this transition. I led an international project looking at how hearing adults lean signing and what role gesture plays in this.
A lot of things happened during 2005-2015 because of ESRC funding to run a research centre. Click here - to go to the DCAL research centre which was set up between Bencie Woll, Ruth Campbell, Gabriella Vigliocco, Mairead MacSweeney and Gary Morgan