Professor Amanda Waterman

Profile

I completed my undergraduate degree and PhD at the University of Sheffield, obtaining my PhD in 2000. I then worked as a Lecturer at the University of Durham for several years, before joining the Univeristy of Leeds where I am now Professor of Cognitive Development in the School of Psychology. Since 2022 I have also been Director of Research in the School of Psychology.

I am the Academic Lead for Cognitive Research in the Born in Bradford Study, which is following the lives of over 13,500 children and their families and is one the largest cohort studies of its type in the world. I am part of the Leadership Group for the N8 Child of the North initiative where we are developing a platform for collaboration, high-quality research, and policy engagement that will improve the lives of children living in the North of England in a post-pandemic age. I also sit on the Steering Committee for the Centre for Applied Education Research (CAER), and for CHORAL (Child Health Outcomes Research at Leeds).

I welcome applications from students interested in doing a PhD with me, on any topics relevant to my research interests. 

Responsibilities

• Director of Research & Innovation
• Academic Lead Cognitive Research: Born in Bradford Cohort Study
• N8 Child of the North | Centre for Applied Education Research | CHORAL

Research interests

My research predominantly focuses on working memory in both children and adults. I am particularly interested in how children’s working memory is associated with other key developmental outcomes, and how we can support children with memory difficulties in the classroom. I am also interested in executive functions more broadly, in children’s metamemory, and in the interaction between memory and motor development. I have a particular interest in linking my research to applied contexts such as the education sector, and to broader outcomes relating to health and wellbeing. 

Specific projects include:

• Academic Lead for Cognitive Research within the Born in Bradford longitudinal cohort study [funded by ESRC/MRC: £3.5M (2016-2021), and Wellcome: £6M (2022-2027)], which has included collecting cognitive measures on ~15,000 children in the primary school years, as well as on a sub-set of those children in adolesence.
• Exploring associations between children’s working memory ability (and broader executive functions) with sociodemographic variables including socioeconomic position and educational attainment.
• Working in collaboration with educational professionals, including teachers and educational psychologists, to develop guidance materials for schools to support children with working memory difficulties in the classroom.
• Cognitive offloading: how and when do children engage in cognitive offloading and how can we use cognitive offloading to support children’s learning in the classroom?
• Following instructions in working memory: investigating how type of encoding and retrieval (e.g., verbal vs. action) affects accuracy in reproducing instructions.
• Directing attention in working memory: understanding how, and when, adults and children prioritise information in working memory.
• The effect of pre-term birth on cognitive and educational outcomes.
• The interaction between working memory and fine motor skills, and links to children’s handwriting.
• Metamemory: in particular, children's ability to identify and communicate a lack of knowledge. When children are asked a question, are they aware when they do not have the relevant information in memory, and can they respond appropriately.

 PhD students

I have supervised 13 PGRs to completion, and am currently supervising six PGRs:

• Asiyah Alzahrani (Saudi University). Following instructions in working memory.
• Clare Copper (NIHR ARC). The effect of preterm birth on cognitive and educational outcomes.
• Hatice Cinar (Turkish Government). Binding and prioritisation in working memory.
• Harry Bennett (BIHR/UoL). Supporting children with working memory difficulties in the classroom.
• Annabel Pickard (School Scholarship): Supporting children with EAL
• Millie Smith (Thomas Ward Scholarship): Cognitive offloading in the classroom

Recent grants

• Is exposure to toxic metals contributing to ethnic and social health inequalities in children and young adults in the UK? (£1.06M), MRC (2023-2026).
• Born in Bradford: Age of Wonder (£6.99M), Wellcome (2022-2027).
• Exploring the associations between children’s cognitive development, sociodemographic factors and educational attainment (£19k), ESRC-funded LIDA Data Scientist Placement (2021).
• Identifying and supporting children with working memory difficulties in the classroom (£7k), ESRC IAA (2021).
• Impact of Covid-19 on learning and wellbeing of children (£2k), ESRC Rapid Response (2020).
• Helping Handwriting Shine (£170k), Education Endowment Fund (2018-2020).
• Born In Bradford: Primary School Years (£3.5M), MRC/ESRC (2016-2021).

Qualifications

• PhD Psychology
• BSc Psychology
• BSc Chemistry

Professional memberships

• Psychonomic Society
• Experimental Psychology Society
• Society for Applied Research in Memory & Cognition
• European Society for Cognitive Psychology

Student education

I teach across all three years of the Undergraduate programme, as well as on the Masters programme. I act as a Personal Tutor, and supervise final year dissertation projects. 

Research groups and institutes

• Perception, action, cognition

Current postgraduate researchers

• Asiyah Alzahrani
• Harry Bennett
• Hatice Cinar