Research Overview

My research connects the interrelations of a person's childhood family to their gender, labour market outcomes, and mental health. I am motivated by my understanding of the family as a micro-social context that reflects, responds, and contributes to larger economic and social systems that drive gender disparities. Centred in my work are two outcomes connected to persistent gender inequalities: work and well-being. My research aims to provide insights into the ways in which gender and childhood family interact to shape experiences of adulthood in the UK. One key aspect of my work is that I use large-scale, nationally representative social surveys that contain rich data on families and households over long periods time. This quantitative approach allows me to engage with existing theoretical assumptions about the importance (or non-importance) of family for child outcomes, and it allows me to test these assumptions against high-quality data. While contextualising my work within the larger socio-cultural environment of institutions and policies that contribute to gendered social roles and socio-economic trajectories, I analytically focus on the micro-level processes between parents, siblings, and adult children to better illuminate how disparity in men and women’s access to opportunities is generated. 

Education

I have the privilege of conducting my PhD research with funding from the ESRC's research centre on Micro-Social Change (MiSoC), under the supervision of Professor Susan Harkness and Professor Esther Dermott.  

I hold a MSc with distinction in Policy Research from the University of Bristol, a Graduate Certificate in Statistics from University of Sheffield, and a Scottish M.A. in Psychology from Univeristy of St Andrews. 

Reserach Projects in Progress

The role of childhood family on adult outcomes: connecting heterosexual parents' family strategies with children's occupational outcomes using the UK longitudinal household Study (PhD study)

Multidimensional disadvantage: considering risk and protective factors for children aged 5 in the UK Longitudinal Household Study (in collaboration with the 2024 Understanding Society Springboard)

Awards & Grants

• ESRC's Impact Acceleration Account: Bristol Model Placement Award (2024-2025)
• MiSoC Scholarship with the University of Bristol (2021-2025)
• MSc Policy Research prize for the best dissertation in 2021
• Bristol Plus Award (2021)
• Universities Federation of Animal Welfare Studentship (2016)

Research Centre Affiliations

• Research Centre on Micro-Social Change (MiSoC)
• Families and Parenting Faculty Research Group
• Children and Families Research Centre
• Centre for Study of Poverty and Social Justice