ϲ

Skip navigation

Dr Carol Stephenson

Associate Professor

Department: Social Sciences

ADSS Carolstephenson Staffprofile 255Carol joined the University of Northumbria in 2001 having previously worked at the University of Sunderland. Prior to teaching and researching in Higher Education she worked as a researcher in a wide range of settings; in the National Health Service, in Community Development settings in the West End of Newcastle and in the former mining community of Ashington in Northumberland; within the trade union movement for TUSIU (The Trade Union Studies Information Unit).

Born and brought up in the North East of England in the steel community of Consett, Co. Durham, Carol's research interests and questions are shaped by biographical experience and biographical research strategies have defined her approach to research.

Carol is a sociologist of work with a research interest in post-industrial communities, and gender and class related social deprivation. She is known for her work on the British miners’ strike of 1984-5, its aftermath and the distinctiveness of the gendered experience of that dispute.

She has been at the forefront of pedagogic innovation, public sociology, and publishing in the subdiscipline of the sociologist of work for more than 20 years.  In 2014 she was recognised for her innovative approach to teaching and learning in sociology when she was awarded BSA/HEA annual Award for Teaching Excellence

Carol is a founding member of Critical Labour Studies (CLS).  CLS is a network of academics, researchers and activists and a set of principles and practices which relate to the co-production of research, public engagement, learning, dissemination and pedagogic innovation.   CLS emerged in response to the importance of a public sociology which engages with non-academic groups as co-producers of research and as learners. CLS is now an international network of teachers, academics, researchers, trade unionists and social and political activists which has over 350 members across 15 countries.

  • Dionne Smith Start Date: 01/10/2018 End Date: 01/04/2020
  • Catriona Hugman What's the Story? Sociological Explorations of the Life Course Narratives of Adults with Care Experience Start Date: 02/10/2012 End Date: 01/06/2018
  • Thomas Ryan Finding the Plot: Developing Practical Community Unionism through Critical Labour Psychology Start Date: 06/07/2010 End Date: 27/09/2012
  • Sarah Lea An Ethnographic Study Exploring the Food Habitus of Families with Children and the Impacts of their Food Environment and Wider Community. Start Date: 21/09/2023
  • Laura Smith The good enough blind parent: an exploration of how personal assistants impact blind parents when navigating normative parenting ideals Start Date: 01/10/2023

  • Sociology PhD January 28 2002
  • Sociology BA January 28 2002
  • Senior Fellow (SFHEA) Higher Education Academy (HEA) 2017


a sign in front of a crowd
+

Northumbria Open Days

Open Days are a great way for you to get a feel of the University, the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and the course(s) you are interested in.

Research at Northumbria
+

Research at Northumbria

Research is the life blood of a University and at ϲ we pride ourselves on research that makes a difference; research that has application and affects people's lives.

+

Find out what life here is all about. From studying to socialising, term time to downtime, we’ve got it covered.


Latest News and Features

In2Air study flats
Professor Greta Defeyter
a map showing areas of ice melt in Greenland
S2Cool project lead Dr Muhammad Wakil Shahzad
The Converted Flat in 2049, by the Interaction Research Studio, is one of seven period rooms built as part of the Real Rooms project which opened in July at the Museum of the Home in London.
The UK Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling (CPOM), based at ϲ, has been awarded over £400,000 by the European Space Agency to investigate tipping points in the Earth’s icy regions with a focus on the Antarctic. Photo by Professor Andrew Shepherd.
More news

Back to top