I’m a research psychologist known internationally for creating evidence-based strategies to improve body image and mental health in digital, community, business, and policy settings.
With a PhD in Health Psychology, I’m passionate about creating environments that accept diversity in appearance and support people, particularly girls, women and gender-diverse people, to live free from the constraint of appearance concerns.
At the Centre for Appearance Research, the world’s largest research group focusing on the role of appearance and body image in people’s lives, I lead a team of researchers investigating psychological and social influences on body image and the development and evaluation of digital and face-to-face body image interventions.
My research is published in over 70 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters, and has featured in the New York Times, BBC, Time, Forbes and teaching case studies at Harvard’s Business School and School of Public Health.
The evidence-based programmes that I’ve co-created and evaluated have been delivered to over 80 million young people in partnership with global youth organisations and businesses, including a long-standing academic partnership with the Dove Self-Esteem Project.
Notably, I helped develop the first evidence-based girl scouts global badge programme, Free Being Me, implemented in 136 countries.
I’ve served as an advisor to the British Government Equalities Office, Transport for London, OfCom, Meta, Unilever and parliamentary select committees. I’m a Fellow of the Academy for Eating Disorders and serve on the Editorial Board for Body Image: An International Journal of Research.
FINE PRINT
EDUCATION
Bachelor of Science (Psychology) First Class Honours (2004)
PhD in Health Psychology (2011)
The University of Queensland, Australia
CURRENT APPOINTMENTS
2021 - now
Founder & Principal Consultant
Everybody Consulting
2018 - now
Professor of Psychology
Centre for Appearance Research, University of the West of England, UK
PREVIOUS APPOINTMENTS
2011 - 2021
Consultant
Clients including Unilever, Meta & NHS England.
2010 - 2018
Research Fellow, Senior Research Fellow, Associate Professor
Centre for Appearance Research, University of the West of England, UK
2006 - 2009
Tutor, Lead Tutor, Lecturer, Course Coordinator
School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, Australia
PUBLICATIONS
Can be viewed here
HONOURS & AWARDS
Academic
The University of Queensland Vice-Chancellor’s Alumni Excellence Award (2020)
Fellow, Academy for Eating Disorders (2017)
Times Higher Education Awards, finalist for 'Most Innovative Contribution to Business-University Collaboration' (2016)
Elsevier Award for Highly Cited Research (2016)
Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, finalist for DuRant Award for Statistical Rigor (2016)
Australian Psychological Society Award for Excellent Higher Degree Thesis (2011)
Seymour Fisher Outstanding Body Image Dissertation Award, by Body Image: An International Journal of Research (2011)
Distinction scholarship for Excellence in Eating Disorders Research, The Butterfly Foundation (2008)
Dean's Commendation Award for Academic Excellence, University of Queensland (2002-2004)
Consultancy
Shorty Award for Instagram (2020), Girls Room. with ATTN: & Dove
Tribeca Film Festival X Award for an Episode Series (2020), Girls Room, with Tiffany Johnson (Director), Dove and Unilever Entertainment, ATTN:, and BBH Entertainment
Cannes Silver Glass Lion for Change (2019), Project #ShowUs, with Unilever - Dove & Publicis Sapient, New York
Clio Entertainment Bronze award Television/Streaming Category: Social Good, Dove Self-Esteem Project x Steven Universe Partnership, with Cartoon Network, Atlanta
Teaching
Undergraduate and postgraduate (MSc, DPsyc, PhD) research supervisor
Guest Lecturer in psychology, public health, evidence-based practice, and using research to influence business, policy and practice
External examiner for doctoral (DPhil, PhD, DPsyc) dissertations