Dr Nicola Ross
Research Associate

email
phone
fax
location

RossN1@cardiff.ac.uk
+44 (0) 29 20 875123
+44 (0) 29 20 874759
1.03, 60 Park Place

Education and Qualifications
PhD: Making Space: Children’s Social and Environmental Geographies, 2002, University of Dundee

Diploma in Applied Statistics with Computing, 1993, University College of North Wales, Bangor

M.A. (Social Science) Hons. in Geography and Sociology, 1991, University of Glasgow

Career Overview
I am a Research Associate, based in QUALITI (Qualitative Research Methods in the Social Sciences: Innovation, Integration and Impact) the Cardiff node of the ESRC National Centre for Research Methods. In addition to carrying out various capacity building activities I work on one of the QUALITI demonstrator projects: '(Extra)ordinary Lives: children's everyday relationship cultures in public care', conducting participatory, collaborative research with children and young people involved in a multi-media research project.

I have been employed in academic and voluntary sectors for a number of years conducting applied social research. From 2003-2006 I was a Research Fellow at the Glasgow Centre for the Child & Society (Universities of Glasgow/Strathclyde) working as the main researcher on a number of studies that focused on the lives of children and young people. Projects included research for the Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance on white children’s perspectives on inter-ethnic relations following the move from primary to secondary school and ESRC/CRFR funded research on relations between grandparents and teen grandchildren. For some of this time (2004-2005) I was also employed as a Lecturer/Researcher at Glasgow Caledonian University, teaching Level 1 and 2 Geography and conducting research for Save the Children on children’s access to sport and leisure provision.

My interest in researching with children and young people to explore their everyday lives is longstanding. I completed my doctoral research on children’s social and environmental geographies in 2002 and worked as a Research Officer for the NSPCC’s Child Friendly Communities Programme (1999–2001). While undertaking my doctoral research in the Department of Geography, University of Dundee I was also employed as a Research/Teaching Assistant (1995–1999).

Research Interests
My research interests lie in the field of children’s geographies and focus on children and young people’s peer, family and community relations. I am interested in developing methods for researching with children and young people and in the use of visual and mobile research methods. Methodological innovation was a key feature of my doctoral research which focused on children’s social and environmental geographies. A multi-method approach was employed, combining interviews and questionnaires with children and parents, and activity based research with children, comprised of self-directed photography, mapwork, writings and drawings.

Teaching Activities
I contribute to the teaching of research methods within the School of Social Sciences focusing on ways of researching children and childhood and the use of visual research methods.

Publications

Journal Articles:
Ross NJ (forthcoming) ‘My journey to school …’: Recounting children’s experiences of school journeys, Children’s Geographies

Ross NJ, Hill M and Shelton A (forthcoming) ‘One Scotland. Many Cultures’: the views of young people from white ethnic backgrounds on multiculturalism in Scotland, Scottish Affairs

Daniel B, Hill M, Stafford A, Seaman P and Ross N (forthcoming) Research Review on Children’s Resilience and Parents: Implications for Policy and Practice, Journal of Marriage and Family

Hill M, Graham C, Caulfield C, Ross N and Shelton A (2007) Inter-ethnic relations among children at school: the perspectives of young people in Scotland, European Journal of Education, 42, 2, 267-279

Ross NJ (2006) Children’s space, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 14, 4, 336-341

Ross NJ (2005) Children’s use of ‘unofficial play spaces’ in their neighbourhood-based play, PlayRights, 26, 2, 22-25

Ross NJ (2004) Researching children’s geographies using a multi-method approach, Primary Geography Research Group Occasional Papers, Volume 4.

Recent Reports include:
Ross NJ (2006) Scoping study for a Centre of Excellence on Children’s Issues, Final Report, Glasgow Centre for the Child & Society

Ross NJ, Hill M and Shelton A (2006) White children’s perspectives on inter-ethnic relations following the move from primary to secondary school, Report for Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance, Glasgow Centre for the Child & Society

Ross N, Hill M, Sweeting H and Cunningham-Burley S (2005) Grandparents and teen grandchildren: exploring intergenerational relationships, Report for ESRC, Centre for Research on Families and Relationships

McKendrick JH and Ross N (2005) Access to leisure and social activities for children living in poverty, Report for Save the Children UK Scotland, Scottish Poverty Information Unit

Hill M, Stafford A, Seaman P and Ross N (2005) Report of literature on parenting and resilience, Joseph Rowntree Foundation.