My background, as a Cultural Studies scholar, encourages me to view the world through a critical Marxist lens, advocating for individuals and groups that are marginalized and/or silenced. Thus, I am especially inspired by research projects that seek to understand and/or expose hidden power structures, exclusions and biases in everyday life, education, leisure activities and popular culture. I also have a keen interest in research that is focused on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), particularly in a tertiary context. In this space, my research interests include intercultural communication, eLearning and critical ethnography.

My PhD dissertation (2008) was focused on a postcolonial textual analysis of popular backpacker resources, to explore how local-hosts are portrayed through a ‘Western-dominated’ ‘tourist gaze’.  This research lead to a book chapter and a journal article on critical tourism and a book chapter on travel weblogs. I also enjoy writing about popular music and digital culture. Most recently, I co-edited a book with Dr Angela Jones titled, The Digital Evolution Live Music (2015), which includes two authored chapters on fan identity  and holographic performers. My next co-edited collection, with Dr Mike Kent, is in press with Rutledge Publishers. It takes a critical look at the future of MOOCs in Higher Education, now that the initial hype has subsided.

My SoTL research includes journal articles on digital pedagogy, academic identity, cross-cultural communication and queer/international student intersections.