Biography

I joined the SHES in September 2021. Prior to joining the University of Portsmouth I completed a B.A. (Hons) Sport Psychology and B.Ed. at Laurentian University (Canada), an M.S.S. Sport and Exercise Psychology at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland), an M.Sc. Diagnostics and Interventions at Leipzig University (Germany). I completed my graduate education in 2021 when I received my Ph.D. from Laurentian University.   

My masters research focused on determining if and how the systematic use of pre-performance music could aid swimmers in reaching an optimal psycobiosocial state prior to performance. My doctoral research focused on understanding how community sport programs could be developed to better support asylum-seeking and refugee youths’ mental health and acculturation to their host community. I have been awarded various prizes for my work including an Erasmus Mundus scholarship, a Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council Ph.D. fellowship, the Association for Applied Sport Psychology Student Diversity Award, and the 2021 Governor General Gold Medal (Canada).

Research interests

My current research focuses on understanding psychosocial and cultural aspects of sport and physical activity. Specifically, my work focuses on the different ways in which youth from different cultural backgrounds engage in sport and the subsequent impact on their psychosocial development. I strive to conduct most of my work in collaboration with, or in response to, community needs and desires so that research outcomes result in impactful change that increases youth engagement and enjoyment in community sport programs.