Matthew Prior

Matthew T. Prior is Professor in the Department of English at Arizona State University, where he mentors undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students. He is presently the Director of the Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, and TESOL programs at ASU. Dr. Prior is also a Barrett Honors faculty member and holds an affiliated appointment with the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. He earned his master’s and doctorate in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) from the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, and he also holds degrees in TESOL, Speech and Hearing Sciences, and Music. 

His teaching portfolio spans qualitative research methods, discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, TESOL, second language acquisition, and professional development. Prior’s teaching philosophy centers on four core principles: fostering lifelong learning, embracing diverse ways of knowing, developing sustainable and inclusive professional practices, and translating research into meaningful social action. His excellence in teaching was recognized with the Zebulon Pearce Distinguished Teaching Award in 2015.

As an applied linguist, Prior takes a holistic approach to language and its role in human experience. His research explores the fascinating relationships between language and emotion, focusing on how identity, belonging, mental health, and well-being are constructed and managed through interaction. His research draws on conversation analysis, discursive psychology, membership categorization, and formulation analysis. This is further enriched by narrative and discursive-constructionist approaches to identity, ethnographic inquiry, socio-psychological dimensions of second language learning, and methodographic analysis of qualitative research practices.

Prior’s scholarship has appeared in leading journals including Applied Linguistics, Qualitative Inquiry, TESOL Quarterly, Text & Talk, The Modern Language Journal, and Journal of Pragmatics. He is the author of Emotion and Discourse in L2 Narrative Research and co-editor of the volumes Emotion in Multilingual Interaction (with Gabriele Kasper) and the Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Discourse Analysis (with Brian Paltridge). He is also co-editor of several journal special issues. 

Currently serving as Associate Editor of Brief Reports for TESOL Quarterly (2023-present), Prior’s editorial experience includes co-founding Research Methods in Applied Linguistics with Shaofeng Li, where he served as Associate Editor (2021-2023). His previous editorial roles include Managing Editor of Language Learning & Technology (2008-2010) and Editorial Assistant for Applied Linguistics (2005-2008). Prior maintains active involvement in professional organizations, notably the American Association for Applied Linguistics, where he has held various leadership positions. He also serves on the editorial boards of Research Methods in Applied Linguistics, TESOL Quarterly, and Applied Linguistics Press.