Dr. Beech retired as a Senior Lecturer in 2010.  He is now an Honorary Visiting Fellow.

Research Interests

Cognitive Psychology.  Reading and its cognitive, educational and biological aspects. Handwriting.

Recent Publications

Books

Beech, J.R. (2008). How to write in psychology: a student guide. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Beech, J.R. & Singleton, C. (Eds.). (1997). The psychological assessment of reading. London: Routledge.

Harding, L.M. & Beech, J. R. (Eds.). (1996). Assessment in neuropsychology. London: Routledge

Other Publications

Beech, J.R. (2010).  Young readers' strategic approaches to reading unfamiliar text.  Reading and Writing Quarterly, 26, 264-284.

Beech, J.R. & Mayall, K.A. (2007).  The word shape hypothesis re-examined: evidence for an external feature advantage in visual word recognition. In P.L. Cornelissen & C. Singleton (Eds.). Visual factors in reading. Oxford: Blackwell. (Previously appeared in Journal of Research in Reading, 2005.) pdf

Webb, T.M., Beech, J.R., Mayall, K.A. & Andrews, A.S. (2006). It's what's on the outside that matters: An advantage for external features in children's word recognition. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 94, 163-181. (Available on application: jrb@le.ac.uk)

Beech, J.R. (2006).  A psychological perspective on the diagnostic assessment of reading: establishing priorities.  In Sainsbury, M., Harrison, C. & Watts, A. (Eds.). Assessing reading: from theories to classroom. NFER: Slough. (Available on application: jrb@le.ac.uk)

Beech, J.R. & Beauvois, M.W. (2006). Early experience of sex hormones as a predictor of reading, phonology and auditory perception. Brain and Language. 96, 49-58. (Available on application: jrb@le.ac.uk)

Beech, J.R. & Mayall, K.A. (2005).  The word shape hypothesis re-examined: evidence for an external feature advantage in visual word recognition.  Journal of Research in Reading, 3, 302-319. pdf

Beech, J.R. & Mackintosh, I.C. (2005). Do difference in sex hormones affect handwriting style? Evidence from digit ratio and sex role identity as determinants of the sex of handwriting.  Personality and Individual Differences, 39, 459-468. pdf

Beech, J.R. (2005). Ehri’s model of phases of learning to read: a brief critique. Journal of Research in Reading, 28, 50-58. pdf

Research Grant

2003-04  (with Dr. K. Mayall) from the BBSRC (£59,056) one research assistant to examine the external feature advantage in  word recognition.

Other

Fellow of the British Psychological Society

Associate Editor of Journal of Research in Reading.

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