David Wright

David Wright is an Associate Professor in Linguistics at Nottingham Trent University (NTU), based in the School of Social Sciences and Department of Humanities. He leads the Language, Identities and Institutions Research Group within the Centre for Research in Literature Linguistics and Culture and serves as REF Unit of Assessment Co-ordinator for Unit D27 - English Language and Literature. His work aligns with NTU's Safety and Sustainability research theme.

Dr. Wright completed his BA, MA, and PhD at the University of Leeds. His research applies corpus linguistics and discourse analysis to forensic and legal contexts to improve justice delivery through language analysis. Key focus areas include forensic authorship analysis, courtroom discourse (particularly cross-examination of vulnerable witnesses), voice identification evidence, online language crimes, and incitement of violence against women. He regularly publishes in international journals and presents at global conferences.

His recent publications (2021-2025) reveal consistent advancement in forensic linguistics methodology, with growing emphasis on computational approaches to legal discourse analysis. Notable trends include sophisticated accent judgment studies in forensic settings, analysis of climate protest discourse, and pioneering work on AI applications in legal contexts. His research maintains strong practical relevance to justice system improvements.

Dr. Wright has received significant recognition including:

• NTSU award for Outstanding Teaching in Arts and Humanities (2019-20)
• NTU Vice-Chancellor’s Teaching Award (2016-17)
• NTU Vice-Chancellor’s Outstanding Teacher Award (2016-17)
• Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA)
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE)

He actively supervises MA and PhD students in forensic linguistics, corpus linguistics, and discourse analysis. Major research funding includes a Nuffield Foundation grant (£328,631) for mapping cross-examination in criminal trials and an ESRC grant (£872,120) for improving voice identification procedures. His projects feature interdisciplinary collaborations across linguistics, law, psychology, and education.

Dr. Wright leads the Language, Identities and Institutions Research Group and contributes to the Nottingham Institute for Languages and Intercultural Communication (NILIC). He serves on editorial boards for multiple journals including Frontiers in Communication and The Elsevier Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics.