I am a Senior Lecturer in Psychology with particular interests in personality, social psychology, mental health and quantitative research methods. Alongside my teaching and research, I have developed substantial experience in student recruitment, academic leadership and international education.
I studied Psychology at Queen’s University Belfast before completing a PhD in Psychology at Ulster University. My doctoral research examined changes in mental health over time using longitudinal data and advanced statistical modelling. This developed into a broader research interest in understanding why individuals respond differently to challenging social and psychological experiences.
My research now focuses primarily on personality, ostracism, social connectedness and mental health. My work has appeared in international journals including Personality and Individual Differences and The Journal of Psychology. I also work extensively with large population datasets, to investigate patterns of mental health, wellbeing and social connection.
I began my academic career at Coventry University, where I held a range of teaching and leadership responsibilities. These included serving as a Year Head, various Module Leadership roles and Internationalisation Champion. I was also involved in developing flexible and technology-supported approaches to teaching and contributed to the delivery of international education initiatives. I also led an international summer school at Queen’s University Belfast.
I subsequently joined the University of Staffordshire, where I teach across undergraduate and postgraduate Psychology programmes. My teaching covers social psychology, research methods and quantitative data analysis. I am particularly interested in helping students develop the confidence to engage with research and statistics and to understand how psychological evidence can be applied to real-world problems.
Alongside my academic work, I have a longstanding interest in leadership, governance and public service. I have previously served as an elected councillor and council chairman and as a director of 2 private companies. In 2026, I was appointed Academic Staff Governor at the University of Staffordshire.