Prof Sarah Riley

Certifications and Registrations

• Licence, Mentor Supervisor, Massey University

Research Interests

qualitative methods, identity, subjectivity, discourse analysis, neoliberalism, gender, postfeminism, masculinity, body image, healthy life style change, feminism, digital subjectivity, social study of alcohol and drug use, consumerism, youth cultures and citizenship

Thematics

21st Century Citizenship, Health and Well-being

Area of Expertise

Field of research codes
Gender Psychology (170105): Health, Clinical and Counselling Psychology (170106): Psychology (170100): Psychology And Cognitive Sciences (170000): Social and Community Psychology (170113)

Keywords

qualitative methods, identity, subjectivity, discourse analysis, neoliberalism, gender, postfeminism, masculinity, body image, life style change, feminism, digital subjectivity, digital health, period tracking apps, social study of alcohol and drug use, consumerism, youth cultures, aging

Current Projects

Teaching Statement

My teaching is informed by social constructionism, supporting students to take a critical standpoint towards taken for granted knowledge, understanding knowledge as socio-historically located and produced through social processes, which ultimately structures our possibilities for thought and action. Social constructionists recognize ‘polyvocality’ (that there are always multiple ways of understanding an issue) and that these understandings both open up and close down possibilities in what we can say, think and do. I engage in research led teaching by using my understanding of social constructionist approach to teach students critical thinking, because it helps them conceptualise knowledge, not as a series of facts to be built up over three years at university, but as ideas for how the world works, and thus part of a human endeavor of sense making that may be evaluated in terms of what it allows people say, think and do at a particular location in time and space. I am able to do this within a scientific discipline so that students both understand the value and concepts behind a scientific paradigm, while learning to conceptualize knowledge as produced by humans within a particular social context.

I specialise in teaching critical pschology, qualitative methods and in teaching through problem based learning.

I am coauthor in the following qualitative methods text books 

Sullivan, C. & Forrester, M. (Eds). (2019).Doing Qualitative Research in Psychology: A Practical Guide. London: Sage. 2nd ed.

Sullivan, C., Gibson, S. & Riley, S. (Eds.) (2012). Doing Your Qualitative Psychology Project. London: Sage

Graduate Supervision Statement

I am an experienced graduate supervisor. Doctoral students supervised outside of Massey include:

Wendy Sims Schoulten, Discourses of mothering, University of Bath, UK

Adrienne Evans, Postfeminism, consumerism and neoliberalism, University of Bath, UK

Alison Mackiewicz, Postfeminist drinking cultures, University of Bath, UK

Craig Owen, Masculinity and dance, University of Bath, UK

Martine Robson, Lifestyle advice after coronary heart disease diagnosis, Aberystwyth University UK

Saffron Passam, Graduate identities in higher education, , Aberystwyth University UK

Nikki Edeh, Experiences of Nigerian nurses working in the NHS, Aberystwyth University UK

Current Doctoral Supervision

Main Supervisor of:

• Claudia Walker - Doctor of Philosophy
  Cooperative inquiry with female corrections officers- experiences of gender and bodies at work.
• Melinda Lewthwaite - Doctor of Philosophy
  Exploring Entanglements of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Dietary Practices and Disordered Eating / Eating Disorders.
• Christina Gillmore - Doctor of Philosophy
  A Dual Analysis Poststructuralist Phenomenological Exploration of Women CSA Survivors’ Embodied Sexual Desires and Pleasures During Adulthood
• Jessica Tappin - Doctor of Philosophy
  Understanding the social discourses that shape the way young women learn about sexual desire.

Co-supervisor of:

• Jane Reeves - Doctor of Clinical Psychology
  Exploring 'Long Covid' Experiences and Healthcare Engagement in Aotearoa/New Zealand
• Kimberley Templeton - Doctor of Clinical Psychology
  It is Not Black and White: Women’s Constructions of Sexual Consent in Mid-life
• Alana Clapperton - Doctor of Clinical Psychology
  Developing a sense of self in the modern world: Gaining deeper insight into the role of social media in young peoples’ lives.

Completed Doctoral Supervision

Co-supervisor of:

• 2024 - Bridget Davies - Doctor of Clinical Psychology
  No Laughing Matter: What can the experiences of women working in the Aotearoa-New Zealand comedy industry tell us about being a woman in a male-domina