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Summary

I am the Course Leader for the BSc (Hons) Sport Managment programme here at the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú. In addition to this I am also a Senior Lecturer in Sports Management and Development.

My research has focused upon the nature of identity in extreme sports, and in particular and how personality traits encourage participation in outdoor, adventurous and sometimes high risk activities. My work thus far has focused on mountain biking but I have an academic interest in a range of outdoor pursuits. My PhD thesis worked to link these concepts to the sports industry by evaluating the mountin bike industry as a fragmented and pluralised market.

Currently I am researching the outcomes of adventurous and outdoor activity on participants and in particular how these forms of 'sport' can enhance the mental wellbeing of those taking part in them.

Biography

I am a ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú graduate having completed a BSc (Hon) in Sports Development in 2004. I also gained my PGCE in Post Compulsory Education (2005) and my MA in Teaching and Learning (2009) at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú. I completed the set in November 2016 when I successfully defended my thesis and gained my PhD.

I was appointed as a Lecturer in Sports Development in January 2007 and was made Course Leader later that year. In was appointed as the Programme Coordinator for all Sports Management and Sports Development undergraduate courses at the university. However, in 2018 I returned to my substantive grade of Senior Lecturer and assumed the management of the BSc (Hons) Sports Management and Development pathway.

I am a Senior Fellow of Advance HE and currently mentor colleagues who are beginning to take on their first teaching roles.

Outside of the university, I enjoy a range of extreme sports such as mountain biking, surfing, snowboarding, mountaineering and stand up paddle boarding. I also take part in road cycling as well as running, where I renjoy taking part in races at marathon and ultra-marathon distances.

Research interests

My research interests focus on the commoditisation and appeal of extreme and adventurous sport and the development of dynamic identities among the practitioners of sports such as mountain biking, surfing and skate boarding. My interests extend to the historical development of these sports and the influence these sports have on popular culture and their place within modern society. I also hold interests in the field of teaching and learning having completed a postgraduate project on assessment and achievement among undergraduate sports students.

I am interested in research that shows the positive impact sport can have on people's lives. My research focuses primarily upon developing a greater understanding of the nature of sports that occur in the the outdoors and how these create desirable outcomes for particular  individuals. The end point of such research is to establish how the benefits of outdoor and adventurous physical activity can be harnessed to improve the lives of people and therefore society more generally.

My current research interests include:

• Indentity formation through outdoor and adventurous physical activity
• The psychosociology of extreme, adventurous and outdoor sport and physical activity
• The nature of extreme sports as fragmented and pluralised pursuits
• The lived experiences of outdoor and adventure sports participants  on mental health and mental wellbeing
• The use of multidimensional scale analysis as a methodological approach in mixed method sports research

Teaching responsibilities

As well as currently managing the BSc (Hons) Sport Management programme I also teach across a range on modules at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. My main teaching focuses upon the sociological and psychosocial perspectives on sport and its place within culture and contemporary society. I also have a strong interest in developing students vocationally and I currently also lead on a work-based learning module as well as contibuting to other professional development provision within the School of Sport, Health and Exercise Science.