Dr Laura McGrath
Lecturer, School of Psychology
Psychology and Social Change
Laura researches experiences of mental distress and service use. She has a particular interest in the role of the material environment in experiences of distress and recovery.
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AE 3.10, Stratford Campus
School of Psychology
The University of East London
Stratford Campus
London
E15 4LZ - l.h.mcgrath@uel.ac.uk +442082234500
Dr Laura McGrath is a Senior Lecturer and the Programme Leader for the BSc Clinical and Community Psychology. Laura also supervises research for both Masters and Professional Doctoral students. Laura’s first degree was in English Literature, completed at Newcastle University. She later converted to Psychology at London South Bank University, where she also completed her PhD.
Laura’s research focuses on the role of material context in experiences of mental distress. Laura's research focusses on understanding the complexity of lived experience, and the role that the settings we live in and move through play in our psychological experiences. Her work hence draws on a variety of perspectives, including experts by experience, community psychology, human geography, and social psychiatry. Her research is qualitative, with a particular expertise in using visual and creative methodologies. Laura is also actively involved in campaigning activities, aimed at promoting progressive approaches to mental distress and community living.
Overview
“Spaces and Scenes of Hospital Life: Staff and psychiatric inpatients’ experiences of care and distress”, which is focused on investigating the relationships between mental distress and space in a variety of inpatient wards in a medium secure forensic unit. The project is in collaboration with Prof Reavey (LSBU), Prof Brown (Leicester), Dr Tucker (UEL) and Dr Kanyeredzi (UEL).
“Spaces of homelessness”. This focuses on the use of space by people with existing experiences of mental distress on being made newly homeless in London. This is in collaboration with Prof Reavey (LSBU), Prof Brown (Leicester), and Ms Weaver (LSBU).
Laura is a member of the Psychology and Social Change research group. She is also a member of the QUAFE network, the London Community Psychology Network. She is on the editorial board for The Psychiatrist, specialising in qualitative methodology. Laura also reviews papers for several journals, including Health & Place, Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, and BioSocieties.
Collaborators
- UEL
- External
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Reader
Dr. Ian Tucker
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Lecturer
Dr. Ava Kanyeredzi
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Professor
Prof. Paula Reavey
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Professor
Prof. Steven D. Brown
Research
Publications
BSc Psychology
BSc Clinical and Community Psychology
MSc Psychology
Modules
PY6313: Psychology of Emotion
PY4108: Clinical and Community Psychology 1
PY5210: Clinical and Community Psychology 3
PY5201: Researching Psychological Worlds 2
PY6101/PYM155: Project supervision