Profile

I am originally from South Africa and was raised in a city called Port Elizabeth.  In 2008 I moved to England.  Now, I live in Shropshire with my husband, son, daughter and my cat (his name is Harry-Gandalf the Black).  It took me many years to become accustomed to the cold weather but now I rather quite like it.

Spicy food is my favourite!  I love cooking Mexican and Italian food and I grow my own herbs and chillies to use in my dishes.  Perhaps its all the spicy food that keeps me warm in England 😊  I keep fit and healthy by doing yoga every day.  It also helps me keep focussed on my work as a Psychology researcher.

I am a big Star Wars fan!  I loved the movies as a child and have loved the excitement of watching all the new episodes and series which have come along since.  My favourite character is Leia because she is such a skilled and capable person and was a splendid leader in The Rebel Alliance.  I’m also a big fan of fantasy genre… vampires, witches, werewolves and all things supernatural.  My favourite series is Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

I have never mastered console gaming (except for watching Netflix) but I continue to try.  One day I will figure it all out.  Perhaps that will be my 2021 new year’s resolution – Master the PlayStation.

In psychology, we refer to conspiracy theories as being alternative explanations for significant social and political events.  These events can cause distress and mistrust and the blame for these events is often placed on groups of people in powerful positions (e.g. the government) or minority groups (e.g. immigrants).  Examples of well-known conspiracy theories can be the 9/11 terror attacks in the US, anti-vaccine, 5G, Covid-19, climate change denial and the deaths of Osama Bin Laden and Princess Diana. There are some really strange ones too… The earth is flat, Beyonce is a robot, the world is run by lizard people and pigeons are actually spies!

For a long time, we believed that conspiracy theories were harmless, however, research now raises awareness of the far-reaching and negative consequences of conspiracy theory belief.  For instance, climate change conspiracy theories mean that there are people who are less likely to reduce their carbon footprint which is bad for our planet.  Similarly, conspiracy theories about coronavirus could be leading to less people sticking to social distancing rules or wearing masks.  This could be helping the virus to spread and again, this is bad for our society.

My research is investigating how conspiracy theories regarding minority groups might be leading to harmful behaviour toward the people who belong to those groups. For instance, if British people believe that immigrants are intending to harm British society, are they more likely justify the use of violence against them?  Another aspect I’m investigating is whether or not conspiracy theories influence how juries make decisions about minority group defendants within the criminal justice system.  So far I’ve found that, depending on certain personality traits, people who are exposed to conspiracy theories about immigrants are more likely to justify harmful behaviour towards them.  This is important because it means that, when these types of conspiracy stories are put forward in society, it may lead to innocent people being hurt based on false beliefs about them.

My hope is that, through our research efforts regarding conspiracy theories, we can raise awareness of all the harmful effects these incorrect beliefs cause.  This will hopefully improve fairness and tolerance in our society.

I wake up at 6:30 every weekday morning and start my day with a big, steaming mug of black coffee.  I then meet a friend and take her dog for walk (he’s a great big, fluffy Siberian Husky with bright blue eyes).  I find this freshens my mind for the working day ahead.  My laptop is usually on between 08:30 and 09:00 and my first task is running through my emails with my second coffee.

On Monday and Friday mornings I teach Introduction to Research Methods which is delivered mostly via online methods, but sometimes I take the train for in-person learning on campus.  On the afternoons of my teaching days, I timetable tasks related to my work as a research assistant or the duties that come with the student committees I serve on. I also use this time to prepare my teaching, and there’s quite a lot to do when teaching Research Methods.

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, all my time is dedicated to PhD work.  I’ve been very fortunate that coronavirus has not disrupted my research, since I don’t need to use a lab to collect data.  My data collection is all done through anonymous online surveys and this happens from the comfort of my home office.  I normally have a companion who stays in my office all day… my cat Harry-Gandalf.  He loves attention and can sometimes be quite disruptive by lying on my keyboard or jumping on my papers and scattering them everywhere.  However, it’s nice having him around and he keeps me from being lonely.

As a PhD student I manage my own hours, and this requires a lot of discipline – it can be very easy to slip off and watch Netflix with a bar of chocolate instead of doing research.  I try and stick to a normal working week schedule i.e. 9am to 5pm-  although I do often work later in the evenings if I need to.  There is much responsibility that comes with being a postgraduate student and it can be somewhat overwhelming at times.  I try and make sure to keep a good work-life balance and I find yoga helps me shake off the stresses of the day.  After all the hours I spend on my laptop, I definitely need to stretch and breath 😊