Biography

I had a previous career in financial services before seeing the light and changing career. Having completed my undergraduate degree whilst working full-time I took a break from study to have a son before taking the plunge and leaving work. In 2010 I chose the University of Surrey for my MSc Health Psychology due to the range of research and experience in the department and have stayed on at Surrey to undertake my PhD and Postgraduate Certificate in Health Psychology Practise. 

As well as my PhD I work for the Division of Health Psychology as the committee Support Officer which allows me to interact with both academic and practitioner psychologists all over the UK and see the wide range of relevant research being undertaken. I also have gained an insight into the current issues affecting the division and wider profession and hopefully have made a positive contribution to the DHP whilst in the role.

Research Interests

My research to date has tended to focus on Obesity. Previous research has looked at the effectiveness of interventions in reducing hedonic drive in individuals post bariatric surgery and aiding their weight-loss and maintenance. A quick simple intervention that I developed showed a positive effect on both elements of peoples hedonic thoughts about food but also a significant positive effect on their subsequent weight-loss. 

My PhD is grounded in dual-processing theory and it is from this base that I aim to investigate with we can see evidence of Attentional and Reasoning biases in sub-groups of over-weight people in their brainwaves using EEG. A key element of the research will be to determine whether certain interventions can affect individuals at a cognitive as well as behavioural level. 

Supervisor: Dr Adrian Banks & Dr Ellen Seiss

Other research interests include insomnia in children/adolescents and the management of chronic pain.

Teaching

I have undertaken teaching with Nutrition & Dietetics students as well as the MSc Health Psychology course. In addition I have been a Teaching Assistant on both U/G L1 & L2 courses.

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If you would be interested in either participating in any of my research of would like to discuss aspects of the research, please contact me on my email as I would be happy to hear from you.