Staff profile

Current Role

I am a Career Development Fellow in the Department of Psychology at Durham University. My research examines resilience, motivation and well-being as dynamic processes shaped by interactions between individuals, their relationships and their environments. I draw particularly upon Self-Determination Theory and Basic Psychological Needs Theory to investigate the conditions that enable people to remain well, motivated and able to function effectively when facing challenge and adversity.

I completed my PhD in Psychology at Durham University in 2025 as part of the interdisciplinary DurhamARCTIC doctoral programme. My mixed-methods research examined resilience and well-being among polar expeditioners through cross-sectional, intensive longitudinal and qualitative studies. This research investigated how personal, social and environmental resources—including coping flexibility, social support and connection with nature—contribute to well-being and ill-being through the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness.

My current work is developing an independent programme of research on resilience and motivation across educational, community, extreme environments and performance contexts. This includes longitudinal research examining the well-being of university students and research into how needs-supportive environments can promote well-being, engagement and sustainable functioning. I also have a longstanding interest in the psychological experiences of endurance athletes, including the relationship between mood and performance in ultramarathon running. Across these areas, I am particularly interested in integrating socioecological approaches to resilience with motivational theory to better understand how people access and use the resources available within their environments.

Alongside my research, I teach research methods, statistics and academic skills, supervise undergraduate dissertation research, and contribute to departmental ethics, admissions and outreach activities. I have spent more than 20 years working with young people, including founding the youth charity BCT Aspire. As a mature and first-generation university student, I retain a strong interest in widening participation and in connecting psychological research with the communities and settings it is intended to benefit.

Research Interests

• Resilience
• Mental health
• Well-being
• Motivation
• Self-Determination theory
• Nature Connection
• Social support
• Sport psychology: Endurance and ultra-endurance athletes 
• Extreme environments