My academic interests centre around health and safety in the work place, with a particular emphasis on work hours. I teach Work Psychology at third year undergraduate level. My research focuses on the effects of ‘non-standard’ work hours (e.g. shiftwork, long work hours and flexible working).
I addition to my position at Swansea University, I am a regular visitor and guest researcher at the Stress Research Institute, which part of the Psychology Department of Stockholm University.
I lead the Work Psychology module on the BSc Psychology programme.
My research considers the impact work hours have upon the health and safety of the employee. One of my main areas of study is the role of circadian rhythms in relation to the effects of shiftworking. I have published several papers looking at how various aspects of shift system design impact upon sleep, alertness on-shift and well-being. I also research other non-circadian aspects of work scheduling, such as the timing and distribution of rest breaks, long work hours, innovative work schedules (i.e. time banks) and the impact of freetime activities on recovery from work.
My research involves a range of methodological approaches, such large scale questionnaire surveys, epidemiological analysis of accident data, field studies of using both objective and subjective measures of sleep, stress and cognitive performance. Most recently, my research has focused on shiftwork in relation to a number of topics including gender, medication use, aging, diet and the development of metabolic syndrome; doctors’ working time arrangements; work time control.
Much of my research activity involves collaborating with colleagues at the Stress Research Institute at Stockholm University, where I have been a guest researcher since 2011. I also regularly collaborate with colleagues at the Psychology Department of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.
Other collaborations include working with colleagues at:
The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, examining associations between shiftwork and medication use.
The module will look at how psychology can be applied in order understand behavior in the workplace and to promote health, wellbeing and safety in the workplace. Topics covered will include job-stress, the human factors behind accidents at work, the design of the work environment, the effects on non-standard work hours (i.e. shiftwork), flexible working and work-family balance. There will be an emphasis on building bridges between the theoretical underpinnings of how understanding behaviour in the workplace and translating this knowledge into practical solutions for organisations and their employees. It will draw up real-life examples of incidents and situations that illustrate the topics under consideration. Another important focus will be the evaluation of methods of study, so as to inform our interpretation of research findings their potential for application in real-world settings.
, £52,764
, £15,763
, £20,307
2011 - Present
