Dr Lisa Thomas

Assistant Professor

School: Psychology

Lisa is an Assistant Professor working at the intersection of psychology and human computer interaction (HCI), She is interested in the role technologies play during life transitions, work-life balance, identity and self-presentation online.

Lisa completed a BA (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Sheffield in 2004 and went on to study for an MSc in Environmental Psychology at the University of Surrey in 2006. Her doctoral thesis, completed at Northumbria University in 2011, explored perceptions of Location-Based Services, refining a theoretical model to predict intentions to use this emerging technology in various community groups. She was then a Senior Researcher for three successive multidisciplinary EPSRC projects: IMPRINTS, ReelLives and DERC.

Email Lisa

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

Psychology and Human Computer Interaction (HCI)
- The role of technologies in life transitions
- Identity
- Self-presentation online and authenticity

Student community and wellbeing
Qualitative Research methods

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
The political geographies of AI and the manosphere, Copley, C., Luger, J., Thomas, L., Dilaver, O. 1 Mar 2026, In: Political Geography
The rise and fall of BeReal: Values of and motivations for (dis)engagement with authenticity-promoting social media, Thomas, L., Talbot, C. 24 Nov 2025, In: New Media and Society
What Does Community Well-Being Mean in the University Setting? Staff Perspectives on Connection, Compassion, and Culture, Dodd, A., Punton, G., Thomas, L., Orme, L., Martin, S., Hey, N., Byrom, N. 1 Sep 2025, In: Social Indicators Research
What was the experience of home-working for UK women during the pandemic, and how did this impact future working preferences?: Submission to the Home-based Working Select Committee , Thomas, L., Elsey, V. 21 May 2025
Information work and digital support during the perinatal period: Perspectives of mothers and healthcare professionals, Kemp, E., Sillence, E., Thomas, L. 16 Aug 2024, In: PLOS Digital Health
How queer hook-up/people nearby application (PNA) users navigate hybrid digital and local space in rural and urban areas: results from a multi-region qualitative scoping study in the United Kingdom (UK), Rawlings, R., Brown, G., Thomas, L., Coventry, L. 31 Dec 2023, AoIR2023, Association of Internet Researchers
Correction to: Exploring digital support for the student transition to university through questionable concepts (Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, (2022), 26, 1, (79-92), 10.1007/s00779-021-01570-z), Thomas, L., Vines, J., Briggs, P. 1 Feb 2022, In: Personal and Ubiquitous Computing
Exploring digital support for the student transition to university through questionable concepts, Thomas, L., Vines, J., Briggs, P. 1 Feb 2022, In: Personal and Ubiquitous Computing
The Digital Lives of Student Mothers: A Consideration of Technologies that Support or Erode the Student/Parent Boundary, Thomas, L., Talbot, C., Briggs, P. 1 Oct 2021, In: International Journal of Human-Computer Studies
Facilitating group work in large cohorts with collaborative technologies, Orme, E., Rossiter, N., Rowe, M., Thomas, L. 2020, In: Psychology Teaching Review

Current and Recent Projects

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
University community well-being, Dodd, A. (Principal Investigator), Thomas, L. (Co Investigator), RIS Internal Funding, 23/01/23 - 23/07/23, £18,638.00

Professional Activity

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Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: 10th World Conference on Qualitative Research 2026
Invited talk: Digital Identities Over Time Online Exhibition 2024
Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: BPS Cyberpsychology Section Annual Conference 2023
Oral presentation: Exploring psychological sense of community in distance learning and campus-based postgraduates 2021
Oral presentation: Student Loneliness: The Role of Social Media Through Life Transitions 2019
Invited talk: Understanding Social Media: Young People, Identity and Change 2018
Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: Making Memories Intelligible: Digital tools for cognitive enhancement 2017
Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: ECPA 10th European Congress of Community Psychology 2017
Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: 2017 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2017) 2017
Organising a conference, workshop, ...: The Appleby Project- Image Sharing Day 2015

PGR Supervision

Richard Rawlings Hook-up app usage as (dis)connection among rural men who have sex with men (MSM):Para-ethnographic zine-production as reciprocal ‘assemblage’. Start Date: 24/04/2025