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Staff Profile

Dr Ruth Graham

Senior Lecturer in Sociology

  • Telephone: +44 (0) 191 208 6987
  • Address: Sociology,
    Room 4.116
    4th Floor Henry Daysh Building
    Claremont Road
    Newcastle University
    NE1 7RU
Background

Following doctoral studies (1997-2002) and a then a period working in Newcastle University Medical School (Research Associate; Public Health tutor), I joined the Sociology subject area as Lecturer in Sociology in 2005. My career experience to date has encompassed extensive educational leadership roles alongside significant collaborations in funded research projects. 

My academic interests are informed by an approach that draws on sociology, social policy and law, as applied to health, illness and disability. I have a particular interest in understanding both lay and professional experiences of health care provided in the context of distressing life events such as reproductive loss and mental health. 

Roles and Responsibilities

(i) Current roles:

Senior Lecturer in Sociology (2011-)

PGR director for Sociology (2022-24), then

PGR director for GPS & Co-Director for Sociology PGR (2024-)


(ii) Previous roles have included:

- in Sociology:

Degree Programme Director, BA Politics and Sociology (2005 - 2009)

Combined Studies Liaison (2005 - 2008)

Subject area Careers liaison (2009 - 2011)

School ethics panel member (2008 - 2010)

Lead Convenor, Health and Life Sciences Research Cluster (2010 - 2012)

Senior Tutor (2010 - 2012)

- in School of Geography, Politics and Sociology

Director of Excellence in Learning, Teaching and Student Experience (2012-2014)               

Chair, School of Geography, Politics and Sociology Teaching and Learning Committee (2012-2014)

- at Faculty / University level:

Dean of Taught Programmes, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) 2017-2021

Associate Dean Teaching and Learning, HaSS Faculty (2015-2017)

HaSS Faculty Education Committee (Member 2012-2017; Chair 2017-2021)

University Education Committee (2017-2021)Student Experience Sub-Committee member (2015-2017)

Programme approval panel member (2009 - 2010; 2015 - 2021)

Evasys Implementation Group member (2012-2014)

Faculty Promotions Panel (elected member) (2013-2015)

Senate (elected member) (2015-2018)

(iii) Roles outwith Newcastle University:

Co-Editor in Chief, Social Theory & Health (2019 onwards; Co-Editor 2008 - 2018)

External Examiner for UG sociology programmes at University of Durham (2017-2021)

External Examiner for UG sociology programmes at University of York (2012-2016)

External Examiner for UG global health programme at Kings College London (2022-2026)

Qualifications

PG Dip Medical Law, 2011. Distinction.

Northumbria University 

Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice, 2005. Distinction.

Newcastle University

Ph.D in Social Policy, Sociology and Law, 2002.

Newcastle University (ESRC Scholarship)

BA (Hons) in Social Policy, 1996. First.

Newcastle University

 

 

Research

Research Interests

My research activities include work in medical sociology and qualitative research, and centres on understanding how distressing life events are conceptualised, experienced and responded to. My work is primarily in medical sociology, covering sociology of reproductive loss and sociological studies in mental health. 

My research involves using multiple methods, but my portfolio of work to date contains a strong focus on qualitative research approaches that cut across my non-fieldwork based and fieldwork based projects, such as:

- Generative Thematic analysis (primarily reflexive thematic analysis)

- Discourse analysis

- Conceptualisations of suffering in sensitive areas of human experience

Current Work

My current work is made up of two key strands:

1. Sociology of mental health with a particular focus on understandings of non-suicidal self-harm

2. Social Science perspectives on experiences of reproductive health and reproductive loss. 

Recent collaborations include:

a. I currently collaborate with Dr Steph Lawler (University of York) and Dr Pete Steggals (Newcastle University) on a programme of work exploring the relational aspects of self harm as social practice. 


b. I currently collaborate with colleagues in the Population and Health Sciences Institute. These collaborations include funded research on weight stigma led by Shelina Visram, and participation in the NIHR MAT-NE network led by Judith Rankin https://arc-nenc.nihr.ac.uk/news/new-maternity-disparities-consortium-aims-to-tackle-inequalities-in-maternity-care/


c. I have been co-applicant on three NIHR studies and the associated journal monograph publications. These include for example:

(i) The MERIDIAN study, which focuses on the use of MRI to image the fetal brain, has published the clinical findings in The Lancet, and findings from the qualitative sub study in Qualitative Health Research and Sociology of Health and Illness. The peer reviewed NIHR monograph for the MERIDIAN study was published in 2019

(ii) The EMPOWER study, which focused on treatments for emesis in pregnancy and trial recruitment processe. The peer reviewed NIHR monograph for this study was published in 2021. 


Doctoral Supervision 


a. Current Supervisions:


Oscar Daniel (2020-) Towards gender inclusive healthcare: improving transgender healthcare education amongst medical students. This project is NINE DTP funded - and supervised with Dr Geth Rees (lead supervisor) and Dr Mark Casey and Prof Alison Phipps. 


Suzanne Butler (2022-) Women’s ‘Stories’: The emotional consequences of personal histories of poverty in childhood and the shaping of women’s lives. This project is NINE DTP funded, and supervised with Prof Tracy Shildrick and Dr Emma Clavering.


Kelvin Chu (2022-) Police Encounters: Perception and experience from People with Mental Illness, supervised with Dr Geth Rees (lead supervisor) and Dr Iain Mackinnon


Kun Bai (2023-) Fertility and Identity under the Three-Child Policy: How Studying Abroad Influences Chinese Post-‘90s Women, supervised with Prof Michael Barr


Sarah Connelly (2024-) How does ‘vulnerability’ act as a mechanism for support, and how is this constructed through practice and policy within police custody in the England and Wales? supervised with Dr Geth Rees (lead supervisor) and Dr Iain Mackinnon


I have also joined the supervisory team for two further PhD projects:


Christina Hotz - who is researching the topic of decentering, dialogic and distributed theory-praxis: collective intelligence and Decidim as resolving pathways through the problem, supervised with Dr Lisa Garforth (lead supervisor)


Salman Khokhar - who is researching the topic Ahmadi Muslim women's experiences in relation to Islamophobia, co-supervised with Dr Jan Dobbernack


b. Completed Supervisions:

- Ella Dyer (2024) Improving care in pregnancy after reproductive loss in women with diabetes: an interdisciplinary exploration of patient experiences and health professional perspectives - NINE DTP funded, and supervised with Dr Ruth Bell and Prof Judith Rankin. 


- Angela Plessas (2024)- Diagnosing women's problems: the impact of diagnostic categories and practitioners' decision-making processes on women's experiences of chronic illness - (NINE DTP funded, and supervised with Dr Geth Rees and Dr Mark Casey;


- Allison Farnworth (2016) 'A qualitative exploration of the role frontline health workers play in defining the quality of services provided to women experiencing an early miscarriage' (supervised with Prof Steve Robson).


- Benet Reid (2014) 'The discourse of evidence-based healthcare (1992-2012). Power in Dialogue, embodiment and emotion' (supervised with Prof Peter Phillimore)


- Lisa Crowe (2014) 'Termination of pregnancy for non-lethal fetal anomaly: professional perspectives' (supervised with Prof Steve Robson and Prof Judith Rankin) 


- Danna-Mechelle Lewis (2012) 'The risk factor - an exploratory study into the assessment of risk within criminal justice practice' (supervised with Prof Elaine Campbell) 


- Liz Turner (2012) 'Reimagining criminology's public role: an inquiry into the relationship between criminological expertise and the democratic public sphere' (supervised with Prof Elaine Campbell) 


Esteem Indicators

Co-Editor-in-Chief - Social Theory and Health

Peer reviewer for various journals, book publishers, and funding bodies including:

Social Science and Medicine

Qualitative Health Research

Journal of Social Policy

Human Fertility

ESRC

Wellcome Trust

Open University Press

Palgrave Press


The paper 'Male rape and the careful construction of the male victim' [Social and Legal Studies, 15 (2): 187-208] was the most accessed article for the journal SLS in the year May 2006-April 2007, with 1,675 total accesses. It continues to be one of the journal's most highly cited articles.


Funding

2018. SHI Foundation for the Sociology of Health and Illness (£2.5k)

Symposium: The Social Life of Self-Harm: exploring and supporting sociological perspectives on nonsuicidal self-injury. 

(Collaborators: Steph Lawler, Pete Steggals). 

2017 NIHR HTA Programme, (c. £2 million)

EMPOWER: EMesis in Pregnancy: Ondanestro With mEtoclopRamide

(Co-applicant, PI S Robson, Newcastle Universrity)

2016 Wellcome Trust, £45k

Connecting Wounds: nonsuicidal self injury in the context of social relations

(named collaborator, PI Steph Lawler, York University)

2015 ESRC Impact Accelerator Award (£9.5k) with Dr Mabel Lie

Patient and professional understandings of fetal MRI: an engagement programme for practitioners

2013 NIHR Knowledge Mobilisation Fellowship - Allison Farnworth

(Core member of fellow management team with Prof Steve Robson and Dr Katie Haighton)

2011 NIHR EME Programme, £1.5 million

(co-applicant, PI S Robson, Newcastle University) 

2010 Department of Health, £35k

(PI, with S Robson, J Rankin and N Embleton)

2010 Tiny Lives (UK charity), £110k

(co-applicant, PI J Rankin, Newcastle University)

2010 NIHR HTA Programme, £1.4 million

(co-applicant; PI P Griffiths, Sheffield University)

2010 Knowledge Transfer Partnership, £164k

(academic lead; co-investigator S Robson, Newcastle University)

2006 Knowledge Transfer Partnership, £120k,

(academic support; PI E Campbell, Newcastle University)

2005 Tiny Lives (UK charity), £52,949 £10,000 (in 2008)

(co-applicant, PI S Robson, Newcastle University)

2002 Wellcome Trust, £80K

(named collaborator, PI C May)

1997 ESRC Doctoral Scholarship

Teaching

Teaching activities

I am currently developing a new module for stage three students in sociology, SOC3049 - States of Mind: Sociology and Mental Health. I really enjoy teaching and learning activities, and working with our amazing students. In addition to teaching on the BA Sociology programme, I also do other teaching, including regular guest lecture contributions to other programmes within Newcastle University, and to a local training programme for medical practitioners beyond Newcastle University. 


I currently supervise 7 doctoral students (3 ESRC funded), and I have previously supervised 7 doctoral students to timely completion. 



Publications