Teenie Matlock has published extensively on language and cognition. Much of her work examines the use and understanding of metaphor in everyday communication. Some studies investigate how framing can influence reasoning about events, situations, or conditions. Some of her recent work focuses on the use of metaphor in Spanish and English descriptions of cancer. Other work focuses on metaphor in descriptions of climate change in the popular media. Matlock is McClatchy Chair in Communications and Founding Faculty in the Cognitive and Information Sciences Department. She has received a number of grants over the years, including eight from the National Science Foundation (NSF). She has been a standing member of LCOM, the Language and Communication Study Section, National Institutes of Health (NIH), and is a member of the Cognitive Science Governing Board. She has received awards for excellence in research (for instance, the Sigma Xi Young Investigator Award), teaching, and mentoring. Matlock is currently the Vice Provost for the Faculty.