Dr Laura Simmons

Laura Simmons

Head of Department for Performance, Health and Wellbeing & Course Leader for MSc Occupational/Business Psychology

Department of Performance, Health and Wellbeing

Contact Details

email: l.simmons@worc.ac.uk

Laura is the Head of Department for Performance, Health and Wellbeing alongside being a Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Programme Lead for MSc Occupational and MSc Business Psychology in the School of Psychology. She teaches a range of modules including Business Psychology, Wellbeing and Work, Psychological Assessment at Work and Leadership, Training and Development.

Laura’s research interests include wellbeing at work, stress and coping, particularly amongst emergency service occupations. Laura also co-developed and has evaluated a wellbeing programme for students called Flourish-HE alongside colleagues in the school.

 

Qualifications

  • PhD Health Studies
  • MSc Applied Psychology
  • BSc Psychology

 

Teaching Interests

  • Wellbeing and Work
  • Business Psychology
  • Research Methods
  • Psychological Assessment at Work
  • Learning, Training and Development

 

Laura also supervises a range of undergraduate and postgraduate research projects.

 

 

 

Research Interests

  • Wellbeing at work
  • Emergency service occupations
  • Sickness absence
  • Stress and coping
  • Mixed methods
  • Intervention evaluation

 

 

Membership of Professional Bodies

  • Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society (CPsychol)
  • Full Member of the Division of Occupational Psychology
  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

 

 

 

Recent Publications

Publications

Morgan, B., & Simmons, L. (2021). A ‘PERMA’ response to the pandemic: An online positive education programme to promote wellbeing in university students. Frontiers in Education, 6 (642632), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.642632

Simmons, L., Jones, A. W., Siriwardena, A. N., & Bridle, C. (2019). Interventions to reduce sickness absence among healthcare workers: A systematic review. International Journal of Emergency Services, 8(2), 147-162. doi: 10.1108/IJES-05-2018-0028

Simmons, L., Jones, T., & Bradley, E. (2017). Reducing mental health stigma - The relationship between knowledge and attitude change. European Journal of Mental Health, 12, 25-40. doi: 10.5708/EJMH.12.2017.1

Conferences

Learning and Teaching Conference, University of Worcester: An online positive education programme to promote wellbeing, June 2020

Postgraduate Research Showcase, University of Lincoln: Understanding sickness absence in the ambulance service, February 2019

Division of Occupational Psychology Annual Conference, Chester: Understanding sickness absence in the ambulance service, January 2019

Psychology Presence in the Midlands, Derby: Interventions to reduce sickness absence among a healthcare population – a systematic review, September 2017

999EMS 2019, Birmingham: Abstract accepted for poster presentation: The relationship between stress, coping and sickness absence in the ambulance service, April 2019

Division of Occupational Annual Conference, Stratford-Upon-Avon: Interventions to reduce sickness absence among healthcare workers – a systematic review, January 2018

 

 

 

External Roles

Peer Reviewer for the International Journal of Emergency Services