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Professor James McQueen conducts research into language processing, in particular the learning processes involved in speech perception. Spoken language is highly variable: everyone speaks differently and even an individual's accent is dependent on context.

Professor McQueen studies cognitive plasticity: how we learn and are able to recognize sounds and words in spite of this variation. He makes comparisons between spoken languages, between dialects, between sign language and the spoken language and between a first and second language. Professor McQueen applies this perspective to research the possibilities for improving teaching methods (for example in learning a second language or learning to read).