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Role:
Department staff:
Research staff:
- Working memory
- Learning and academic achievement in primary school children
- Memory for rhythm and music
Teaching staff:
- Position:Lecturer
- Department:College of Health, Science and Society School of Social Sciences
- Telephone:+441179656261
- Email:Debbora.Hall@uwe.ac.uk
About me
I became a Lecturer in Psychology at UWE in September 2025, after 9 years here working as an Associate Lecturer. I teach across the degree, including Level 3 Developmental Psychology, Level 2 Mind Brain and Development, and Level 1 Introduction to Psychology. I supervise students taking Psychology in Action, Developing Self and Society, and the undergraduate dissertation, and contribute to the MSc conversion course.
My research generally focusses on the mechanisms underpinning working memory and short-term memory in children and adults, and I've been lucky enough to work with many inspiring researchers over the years as part of key working memory labs in the UK at Durham, York, and Bristol. I've always been interested in what can happen when working memory doesn't work for us, and what we can do to help individuals (particularly young children) who may struggle with everyday working memory demands.
Before my time at UWE, I worked with Prof Chris Jarrold at the University of Bristol, and led a Knowledge Exchange Partnership with Bristol City Council and North Somerset Council Educational Psychology Services, and the film production company microfilm. We produced 4 short films and a range of resources on working memory in the classroom, which are freely available at www.bristol.ac.uk/working-memory
Academic and Practical Experience:
I completed my PhD on memory for rhythm and short-term memory at the University of York, supervised by Sue Gathercole, with Graham Hitch and Tom Hartley as my secondary supervisors. I explored memory for rhythm in children and adults, with a particular interest in how this relates to young children’s developing phonological awareness and how rhythm relates to mechanisms of short-term serial order recall. I began teaching Cognitive Psychology as a Master’s student at the University of Durham, and after my PhD, gained a teaching position at Newcastle University, teaching introductory topics, research methods, developmental psychology, and co-supervising undergraduate dissertations, before going on to lead the Level 2 Research Methods module. I then completed a post-doc at the University of Bristol with Chris Jarrold and John Towse, exploring the component parts of working memory and how they relate to children’s academic performance. During this time, I was an associate editor for The Journal of Experimental Child Psychology and was on the BPS Developmental Section committee.
Area of expertise
Working memory and children's learning, and behaviour in the classroom.
The structure of working memory.
Memory for rhythmic patterns and links to verbal short-term memory and language in young children.
Publications
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