We play a major role regionally, nationally and globally. In the UK we train educational and clinical psychologists, while around the world our research is having a direct impact. We attract millions of pounds in funding and offer a stimulating research environment that inspires our students.
Key facts
100%
of our research impact rated world-leading (4 star)
At the School of Psychology we produce impactful world-leading research and offer high-quality undergraduate and postgraduate training.
Over 100 academic staff deliver research and education across our core areas of expertise:
social and personality psychology
health psychology
clinical psychology
cognitive psychology and perception
We are home to over 700 undergraduate BSc students, 150 postgraduate taught and 150 postgraduate research students. Our 3 BPS accredited BSc programmes offer high quality research-led training in psychological sciences with pathways to our extensive portfolio of research and practitioner postgraduate programmes. Our Law with Psychology (LLB) programme is accredited by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). We provide an environment in which our students can flourish as they develop into independent, creative and critical thinkers who make positive, varied and meaningful contributions to society.
Psychology at Southampton are one of the largest providers of accredited postgraduate research and practitioner training in the UK, offering:
MSc programmes (clinical, health, psychology)
research doctorates (PhD)
doctoral programmes in Clinical Psychology (DClin) and Educational Psychology (DEdPsy)
cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) training
Our suite of cognitive behavioural therapy courses includes:
Our school partners with communities and collaborators in the public and private sectors to share knowledge and best practice. We carry out social enterprise initiatives and work with other disciplines to develop psychological interventions, many of which have been adopted nationally and internationally. See the work of the Centre for Homelessness Research and Practice and the Digital Interventions Group.
Professor Nick Maguire speaks at a community research impact event.
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Our priorities
Research
The School has four cross-cutting research priority themes:
Brain and behaviour
Multi-method approaches (e.g., experimental psychology, brain imaging and stimulation, EEG, eye tracking, patient studies of neurological and clinical populations) to elucidate the neural bases of human behaviour and cognitive function and understand neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders in clinical populations leading to the development of novel interventions to improve healthcare outcomes.
Digital applications and interventions
Exploiting new methods and techniques provided by cutting edge AI developments, machine learning approaches, digital health interventions, use of technology to improve social and health outcomes in adult and child mental and physical health.
Adult and child mental health and development
Autism, ADHD and developmental disorders, neurodiversity, psychosis, innovation in mental health interventions and outcomes, homelessness, reducing health inequality.
Individual, relational, and collective self
The self, identity, and behaviour in a social context, virtual environments, and social media; social and affective neuroscience, social cognition and emotion, motivation, close relationships, sexual identity and behaviour, moral psychology, psychological well-being, religion and lay beliefs, authenticity, narcissism, political extremism, misinformation, and dark web culture.
These cross-cutting priorities are underpinned by our specialist research centres and groups (see our research community section below).
We aim to develop programmatic research that:
asks the most important research questions to develop our models of understanding
is sustained through grant funding and our large multidisciplinary postgraduate research community
uses the latest advanced methods and technologies
develops clear pathways to achieve impact through partnership and interdisciplinary approaches
creates an environment and culture that embeds equality, diversity and inclusion, and promotes well-being and success for our postgraduate researchers and staff
attracts talented postgraduate researchers and academics to join us through the School of Psychology studentship and national and international fellowship schemes
A researcher prepares a participant for facial electromyography.
Education
We aim to:
provide the highest quality academic training in psychology
provide a stimulating and engaging learning environment that enthuses students to develop their knowledge, skills and expertise
embed our excellence in research, impact, knowledge exchange and practitioner training to enrich education and graduate prospects
combine our excellence in innovation and research infrastructure to best teach, assess, supervise and support students to achieve their academic potential
provide inclusive, ambitious, high quality courses that our students value and are rightly proud of
Students working together in our Psychology Student Hub.
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Research culture
World-class research feeds into everything we do.
The most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021) rates 100% of our research impact case studies as world leading (4 star). Our research environment is rated world leading and internationally excellent. The scientific research we carry out across our 4 research centres examines the brain and behaviour in health and disease. We investigate perception and cognition, mental health, self and identity, and health psychology.
We have long-standing and successful collaborations with University research groups in:
medicine (psychiatry, primary care and public health)
biological sciences (neuroscience)
health sciences
education
social sciences
engineering
computer science
The Institute for Life Sciences supports further cross-disciplinary collaboration. We have established strategic partnerships with schools, NHS trusts, government, charities and industry. These collaborations result in research with real-world impact and attract significant grant income from major research funders, including National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
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Facilities and expertise
The 2021 Research Excellence Framework recognises us for the quality, scale and impact of our research.
Underpinning this are our research facilities, including purpose-built laboratories for:
neuropsychological and cognitive testing
social interaction and behavioural observation
therapeutic intervention and psychopharmacology
child and family studies
functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
electroencephalography (EEG)
neurostimulation (TMS/tDCS)
psychophysiology
pain research including quantitative sensory testing (QST)
eye-tracking
virtual reality and multi-sensory processing
Our academic teams work from Shackleton (building 44) on our Highfield campus. This enables research-led education, extensive research collaboration and translational research with our students and stakeholders.
Our eye-tracking recording suite is one example of our psychology facilities.
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Fellowships
We welcome applications from researchers interested in applying for funding for independent fellowships.
Eligible schemes
Our support package helps researchers develop competitive fellowship applications to a wide range of schemes, including the following. Contact us for advice about schemes not listed here:
British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships
UKRI Future Leader Fellowships
MRC Career Development Awards
EPSRC Postdoctoral Fellowships
BBSRC Postdoctoral Fellowships
NIHR Postdoctoral Fellowship
Wellcome Trust Early Career Awards or Career Development Awards
ERC Starter, Consolidator or Advanced Grants
Support for applicants
We match applicants with a departmental host, who will provide:
help with applications, including support letters and costings
introductions to potential collaborators
introductions to existing fellows
a tour of our department and facilities
Support for research fellows
Successful applicants enter our formal fellowship scheme, which offers:
training
access to the latest equipment
protected time away from teaching and administrative duties
opportunities to enter PhD studentship and research grant competitions
opportunities to move into a permanent academic role
Moving into a permanent role when a fellowship ends (proleptic appointments)
Sometimes a research fellow will wish to move into a permanent academic role with us when their fellowship ends. This is called a proleptic appointment.
How research fellows move to a permanent role
During the fellowship, we'll set the objectives the research fellow must meet to move to a permanent role.
After 18 months, the school will review progress against objectives.
If the research fellow meets their objectives, they can apply for a permanent role.
As part of the application process, we'll ask them to give a research talk to colleagues, complete a teaching exercise and undergo a panel interview
Get in touch to discuss a fellowship application
Whatever stage you're at with your application, we'd love to hear from you.
We are a collegiate, collaborative and professional team that values diversity and equality. As a school we hold an Athena SWAN Bronze Award, demonstrating our commitment to equal opportunities and gender balance in the workplace.
We work hard to highlight areas to improve our inclusivity. We've implemented a range of actions, including:
supporting the progression of female staff to professorial and leadership positions
recruiting more men into undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, particularly in health, clinical and educational psychology
Our Athena SWAN Award shows our commitment to gender equality.
Dr Jonathan Baker is a behavioural science and insight specialist who uses psychology, behavioural science and research methods to help design, improve and evaluate public health services and interventions. He is passionate about turning evidence into practical solutions that help communities thrive and achieve better outcomes.
Craig Foster
National Air Traffic Services
Craig Foster is Futures & Innovation Manager at NATS, the UK’s major air traffic control organisation. He is a Chartered Mathematician and holds a PhD in Human Factors Engineering from the Transportation Research Group at the University of Southampton.
Gemma Hortop
Hounsdown School
Gemma Hortop has been a secondary school science teacher for 30 years. Currently, she works at Hounsdown School, Totton where she is responsible for the development of partnership work between higher education establishments and the school. She has developed a number of different projects within the Southampton University community including: School of Oceanography, Medical Science, Engineering, Robotics and Life Science.
Dr Tansy Arthur
National Office of Statistics
Dr Tansy Arthur leads the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey and Adhocs teams at the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Having led research transformation projects for many years, Tansy is experienced in using the Generic Statistical Business Process Model (GSBPM) to design and develop surveys to inform government policy. Tansy has previously worked in ONS 2021 Census, and Service Design. Before ONS, Tansy worked in Defra, HMRC, MOD, DfEd and DWP in research, commercial and MI roles. Her understanding of the private sector arose from working as a business psychology consultant and coach (leadership development, organisational audits and recruitment) in NI for 8 years. Tansy began her research career at the University of Manchester, and taught at Sheffield Hallam University and briefly at University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Professor Peter Phiri
NHS Southern Health Trust
Professor Peter Phiri is a clinical academic, specialist cognitive behavioural psychotherapist/ RNMH and research leader whose work spans culturally adapted psychological interventions, clinical trials, global mental health and health inequalities. Formerly a senior NHS Research and Innovation leader, he is a Visiting Academic at the University of Southampton, and Visiting Professor at the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka, and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria, bringing more than 25 years of clinical, research and strategic leadership experience to his role as Chair of the School of Psychology External Advisory Board.
Dr Katherine Cornes
Defence Science and Technology Laboratory UK (Dstl)
Dr Kat Cornes is a cognitive psychologist working at Dstl, the Ministry of Defence’s in government science and technology organisation which provides unique expertise, insights and solutions essential to maximising our warfighters’ ability to operate, deter, fight and win. I have led multi-discipline teams working on applied psychology research programmes that have delivered, and continue to deliver, evidence-based scientific advice to inform policies and develop interventions to support defence and security in addressing some of its key challenges.
Explore our psychology research and the groups we host or work closely with. Learn about the services we offer, from psychological support for homeless people to training for outreach workers.
It’s a privilege to work alongside such a talented staff team and with our students who care so passionately about psychology – the science and its impact.
I’m excited to support colleagues across the School of Psychology and beyond to bring diverse perspectives together, ask new questions and pursue ambitious research addressing the challenges that people and society are facing.
Professor Jana Kreppner
Professor in Developmental Psychology and Deputy Head of School (Research)
It is a privilege to work together with our passionate and hard-working students and staff in an enriching educational environment that prepares our students for a successful future.
Professor Lyn Ellett
Professor of Psychology and Mental Health, and Deputy Head of School (Education)
