I’m a sociologist based in Manchester, UK, specialising in relationships, love and intimacy in contemporary life. My research explores how people navigate couple dynamics, infidelity, break-ups, friendships and dating apps, with a particular focus on the experiences often dismissed as ‘ordinary’ but which shape our lives in powerful ways.
I’m a Reader in Sociology at Manchester Metropolitan University, where I teach at undergraduate and postgraduate level and supervise PhD students. I also co-direct the Contemporary Intimacies, Sexualities and Genders (CISG) Research Group – an interdisciplinary network exploring how relationships, identities and intimacies are changing in today’s world. You can read more about our work here.
My current projects focus on midlife intimacy, relationship breakdown, and digital dating practices. I specialise in a variety of qualitative methods, including interviews, focus groups, and critical discourse analysis. I have published extensively on:
- Couple relationships, love, sex, and commitment
- Domestic and emotional labour
- Relationship breakdown and infidelity
- Friendship, including the complexities of difficult friendships
- Dating apps and hook-up culture
- Masculinities, with particular attention to male dating app users