About
I am an applied social scientist and methodologist leading the design and conduct of process evaluations, realist evaluations, qualitative research and mixed methods across a range of health studies. I am also a Senior Research Advisor for the Research Support Service at Southampton and Partners where I support research design, methods development and the career development of researchers. The overall focus of my work is to understand how complex health interventions work through examining how interventions are implemented, how they produce change in participants, and how they are affected by contexts. I have conducted studies across a range of health fields including primary care, mental health, surgery, and public health - ranging from large programme grants and randomized controlled trials to ethnographic studies. I take an interdisciplinary and equity-focused approach to my work, drawing on my background as a social scientist and previous work on socioeconomic inequalities, community development and participatory approaches.
Research
Research groups
Research interests
- Qualitative methods
- Process evaluation
- Realist evaluation
- Mixed methods
- Health inequalities
Current research
My research focuses on understanding how complex health interventions work across a range of fields. I specialise in four key methodologies to do this: process evaluation, realist evaluation, qualitative methods and mixed methods. I apply these methods - using critical realist and social science perspectives - to understand the complex interactions between psychological states, behaviours, organisational processes, social contexts and health outcomes. My current studies are investigating the role of primary care in early cancer diagnosis, treatment for anxiety and depression, an ante-natal anxiety intervention, and nature-based therapies.
Publications
External roles and responsibilities
Biography
I was previously a Research Fellow (2014-2021) and Senior Research Fellow (2021-2025) in the Department of Health and Community Sciences, University of Exeter Medical School. Prior to this I was a Research Associate at the Centre for the Development and Evaluation of Complex Interventions for Public Health Improvement (DECIPHer), University of Cardiff (2010-2014). Before academia I worked closely with the public and voluntary sectors to lead evaluations of child poverty, unemployment and substance abuse interventions. My PhD (University of Bath) examined community participation in urban regeneration, working with the European CINEFOGO Network group in Trento (Italy) and Prague. I have also worked for several voluntary organisations, including an education charity in the South Bronx (New York).