Dr Ruth Woods
| Biography | Ruth works part time as a Lecturer in Psychology at RGU. Her current research focuses on three areas. Firstly, she examines how humans respond psychologically to living in diverse societies, particularly on how we make sense of and respond to religious and ethnic differences. Secondly, she is interested in psychological aspects of sustainability and climate change, particularly climate scepticism and adoption of plant-based diets. Thirdly, she has published on the efficacy of online coaching techniques and how these can be enhanced by taking into account the recipient's unique psychological history. |
|---|---|
| Research Interests | Earlier in my career, my research focused on children's peer relations, culminating in the publication in 2013 of a monograph, 'Children's Moral Lives' (Wiley). This book offers a rich ethnographic account of children's moral values in a multicultural London school. Praise for the book includes: 'Children's Moral Lives' deserves to become a classic... Start your readings on moral development with Jean Piaget but then be sure to read Ruth Woods' (Richard Shweder, Department of Comparative Human Development, University of Chicago). Following a career break to start a family, and a spell as Research Fellow at the University of Aberdeen and then Research Officer at SCRA, a Scottish child protection body, my research shifted to environmental psychology (particularly climate change scepticism) and the experiences of looked after children. More recently, I have become increasingly fascinated by the psychological processes implicated in life in contemporary diverse complex societies. I am currently researching how people respond psychologically to religious and ethnic differences in the UK setting. I am particularly interested in how identity, beliefs and practices change over time in diverse contexts. Alongside this focus, I am also involved in research on psychological aspects of climate change and the efficacy of online coaching techniques. Please note that this webpage only includes work that I published since starting at RGU. For earlier publications, please feel free to contact me, or see my ResearchGate webpage. |
| Teaching and Learning | Ruth teaches on several modules on the BSc Applied Social Sciences, MSc Applied Psychology, and MSc Social Work degree programmes. Her main areas of teaching comprise developmental psychology, ethics, conceptual issues and critical psychology, and qualitative research methods. She convenes Developmental Psychology modules on the BSc Applied Social Sciences and the MSc Applied Psychology programmes. |
| Scopus Author ID | 23968382600 |