Rebecca Ward

Dr Rebecca Ward is a Lecturer in Psychology at Swansea University. Her research interests are broadly related to language acquisition and bilingualism, with a specific focus on children with developmental disabilities such as Down syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorders. This was the topic of her doctoral research, which was the first piece of research to investigate bilingualism in Welsh-English speaking children with Down syndrome. She is passionate about disseminating research findings with those outside of the immediate academic context and she has engaged in several public engagement activities to share information with a range of individuals and organisations.

Prior to her current role, she worked as a part-time Lecturer in Psychology at Bangor University and as a part-time Senior Research Assistant at the University of South Wales. Her main focus in this role was to develop a training package in partnership with third sector organisations to increase awareness of a condition called Alcohol-Related Brain Damage. The focus of this project was to utilise research findings in a novel way to inform practice within the health and social care sector.

She has worked collaboratively with a number of external partners including the Down’s Syndrome Association, Learning Disabilities Wales and The Pobl Group and has also engaged with a number of media outlets.

For further information, contact via email at: r.k.ward@swansea.ac.uk