Harry McGurk
Encyclopedia
Harry McGurk was a Scottish cognitive psychologist
. He is known for his discovery of the McGurk effect
, described in a 1976 paper with his research assistant John McDonald, while he was a senior developmental psychologist at the University of Surrey
..
He was born in Hillington, Glasgow
on 23 February 1936. After training at the University of Glasgow
, he became a probation officer in Edinburgh.
He married Betty Hannah. She was invited to go out to the Church of Scotland mission in Nigeria to use her accountancy skills and for two years he became involved with the management of the school and hospital.
On their return, he studied psychology at University of Strathclyde
, gaining a BA, an MSc, and a PhD for his seminal work on infant perception.
Following a period as a Research Fellow at Princeton University
, he joined the University of Surrey, as a lecturer in child development and later was appointed to a personal chair in the same subject.
Between 1990 and 1994 he was Director of the Thomas Coram Research Unit at the Institute of Education, University of London . In 1994, he was appointed as Director of the Australian Institute of Family Studies
in Melbourne. .
Harry McGurk died on 17 April 1998, in Melbourne
, aged 62, from complications after a heart operation.
Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
. He is known for his discovery of the McGurk effect
McGurk effect
The McGurk effect is a perceptual phenomenon which demonstrates an interaction between hearing and vision in speech perception. "It is a compelling illusion in which humans perceive mismatched audiovisual speech as a completely different syllable". The visual information a person gets from seeing a...
, described in a 1976 paper with his research assistant John McDonald, while he was a senior developmental psychologist at the University of Surrey
University of Surrey
The University of Surrey is a university located within the county town of Guildford, Surrey in the South East of England. It received its charter on 9 September 1966, and was previously situated near Battersea Park in south-west London. The institution was known as Battersea College of Technology...
..
He was born in Hillington, Glasgow
Hillington, Glasgow
Hillington is a residential suburb and an industrial estate on the southwestern edge of the Scottish city of Glasgow. Whilst the residential area is wholly within Glasgow, the greater part of the industrial estate falls under the jurisdiction of neighbouring Renfrew, although for business...
on 23 February 1936. After training at the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, he became a probation officer in Edinburgh.
He married Betty Hannah. She was invited to go out to the Church of Scotland mission in Nigeria to use her accountancy skills and for two years he became involved with the management of the school and hospital.
On their return, he studied psychology at University of Strathclyde
University of Strathclyde
The University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, Scotland, is Glasgow's second university by age, founded in 1796, and receiving its Royal Charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university...
, gaining a BA, an MSc, and a PhD for his seminal work on infant perception.
Following a period as a Research Fellow at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, he joined the University of Surrey, as a lecturer in child development and later was appointed to a personal chair in the same subject.
Between 1990 and 1994 he was Director of the Thomas Coram Research Unit at the Institute of Education, University of London . In 1994, he was appointed as Director of the Australian Institute of Family Studies
Australian Institute of Family Studies
The Australian Institute of Family Studies is an Australian Government statutory agency in the portfolio of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. It is located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
in Melbourne. .
Harry McGurk died on 17 April 1998, in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, aged 62, from complications after a heart operation.
Publications
- The economic cost of child abuse and neglect in South Australia. 1998
- Staff-child ratios in care and education services for young children. 1995
- Project Charlie : an evaluation of a life skills drug education programme for primary schools. 1995 .
- Childhood social development : contemporary perspectives / edited by Harry McGurk 1992
- Developmental psychology and the vision of speech.1988
- What next? 1987
- Brain and behavioural development: interdisciplinary perspectives on structure and function / edited by Harry McGurk and John W.T. Dickerson. 1982
- Issues in childhood social development / edited by Harry McGurk. 1978
- Ecological factors in human development by International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development. Conference (3rd: 1975: University of Surrey). 1977
- Growing and changing : a primer of developmental psychology. 1975
- Ph.D Thesis: Oriental discrimination in infancy and early childhood. University of Strathclyde. Dept. of Psychology. Thesis, 1971.