Dr Mimi Huang

Research interests:

The scope of my research spans cognitive linguistics, language and health, narrative studies, discourse analysis, CDA, stylistics and corpus linguistics. These strands converge under three overarching themes:

Language and health: I am interested in the diverse ways that language shapes our understanding and engagement with health-related matters, ranging from physical health to mental wellbeing, public health communication, health literacy and beyond.

Wellbeing, identity and personhood: This part of my research explores the connections between language and individual identity, examining how we communicate and make sense of our identity, wellbeing and relationships with others within the broader community.

Narratives and stories: My research also investigates the characteristics, functions and significance of narratives across various genres and contexts, including literary and creative works, narratives in workplace and organisational settings, as well as personal and shared stories within social groups and communities.

Public engagement and impact activities:

I work closely with public services, charities, healthcare organisations, community groups, and the broader public to enhance communication and engagement in healthcare, community safety and public health.

PhD supervision:

I am currently accepting PhD students.

With extensive experience as a principal supervisor at Northumbria, I have successfully guided research students to the completion of their PhD degrees, tailoring my approach to each student to help them achieve their full potential. 

I welcome research proposals in cognitive linguistics, health communication, narrative studies, discourse analysis, stylistics, metaphor studies, corpus linguistics, and interdisciplinary projects. I am particularly interested in projects that employ mixed-methods and multidisciplinary approaches to explore the intersection of language with health, well-being, identity and personhood, as well as those that explore the cognitive and sociocultural dimensions of narratives and storytelling. If you are passionate about these areas, I would be delighted to discuss your research proposals. 

• Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
• Weaving narrative threads with social psychological processes: narrative modulations in online consumer reviews of a medical memoir, Huang, M. 1 Nov 2024, In: Language and Literature
• Narrative modulations in patient-practitioner communication: Exploring attunement and misattunement in supported self-management, Huang, M. 1 Jun 2024, In: Language and Health
• The Language of Crisis: Metaphors, Frames and Discourses, Huang, M., Holmgreen, L. 16 Jul 2020
• Introduction: Constructing and Communicating Crisis Discourse from Cognitive, Discursive and Sociocultural Perspectives, Huang, M. Jul 2020, The Language of Crisis, Amsterdam, John Benjamins
• Narrative Modulation in the Storytelling of Breast Cancer Survivors’ Transitional Experiences, Huang, M. Jul 2020, The Language of Crisis, Amsterdam, John Benjamins
• Socio-psychological salience and categorisation accuracy of speaker place of origin, McKenzie, R., Huang, M., Ong, T., Snodin, N. 1 Sep 2019, In: Lingua
• An investigation of how supported self care is perceived and communicated by healthcare community members in the North East of England, Huang, M. 4 Apr 2017, British Sociology Annual Conference 2017
• Communicating and Cooperating with Cancer Patients -- Where Cognitive Science Meets Narrative Medicine, Huang, M. 20 Jul 2015, ICLC 13 - 13th International Cognitive Linguistics Conference
• A Critical Review of Narrative-Based Medicine — Its Recent Development and Prospective Outlook, Ye, Y., Huang, M. May 2015, In: Xunzheng Yixue
• Exploring Meaning Construction in Narrative Discourse, Huang, M. 15 Feb 2012, 4th UK Cognitive Linguistics Conference

• SONDOS IBRAHIM Cross-Cultural Cognitive Metaphors of Pain and Pain Management Start Date: 07/10/2014
• Gerrit Kotzur Disablism at Work. A Critical Discourse and Biographical Narrative Study of Blind and Partially Sighted People’s Professional Identities in the UK and Germany Start Date: 07/10/2014 End Date: 04/12/2018
• Hui-Ching Lin Particles in Phrasal Verbs— A Cognitive Linguistic Approach to Meaning Constructions in the EFL Context Start Date: 01/10/2015 End Date: 16/09/2019
• Sylvia Spanou A Cognitive Linguistic model of deconstructive interpretation Start Date: 01/03/2017 End Date: 19/11/2022
• Houssem Sid The Line between Screening Muslims and Being One: The Representation of the Muslim Identity in ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’ (2012); Algerian Muslims’ Perceptions and Negotiations of Muslim Identity. Start Date: 01/10/2019
• Saeed Hoseini Multiple Voices in Lyric Poetry: A Discourse Stylistic Study of How a Non-Narrative Genre Creates Effect Through Narrative. Start Date: 01/10/2024
• Yulin Diao Communicators on the Frontlines: A Mixed-methods Study on the Linguistic Dimensions of Vicarious Trauma in Public Service Interpreters. Start Date: 01/10/2024

• Linguistics PhD July 15 2008
• Fellow (FHEA) Higher Education Academy (HEA) 2008