Richard P. Meier is a professor in the Departments of Linguistics and Psychology. Dr. Meier's research is inspired by the fact that there are two modalities, or transmission channels, available to human languages: the visual-gestural modality of sign and the oral-aural modality of speech. His publications examine the linguistics of signed languages and their acquisition by deaf children. He seeks insights into the ways in which linguistic organization and child language development are (or are not) shaped by the modality in which a particular language is produced and perceived. Much of Dr. Meier's research concerns child language development, with a particular emphasis on how deaf children acquire American Sign Language (ASL) as a first language. His research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.

From 1996 through 1998, Professor Meier was Associate Vice President for Research at UT Austin. He is proud of his role in bringing ASL language instruction into the Department of Linguistics, and the College of Liberal Arts. From 2000 to 2010, he directed the ASL language program of the Department of Linguistics.