Behind The Research Podcast

We talk about the process of making Behind The Research, what the experience was like, and why I wanted to celebrate the feminist, sex and gender research being done at York St John while also hearing about the people doing it and their stories. We discuss the image of the ‘perfect professional’ and the baggage that comes with it, and why I think hearing people’s journeys, struggles and experiences can soften the invisible yardstick that PGRs, ECRs and academics can measure themselves by. I also reflect on my own experience of tying my self-worth to my work and neglecting myself along the way, and why academia, with its culture of performing certainty and confidence, is an interesting place for this.Behind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com

In this episode, I interview Dr Amy Holmes. Amy is a lecturer in Social Sciences at York St John University. I ask Amy about her experiences in higher education both previously, as a student, and now as a lecturer. Amy explains she has become mindful of the gaps in official and institutional knowledge, and describes a need to be as creative, flexible and critical when it comes to quantitative data, as we are with qualitative data. She explains that despite its status as the objective gold standard, quantitative data is complex and contradictory and only tells part of the story. We also talk about Amy’s research collaboration for Kyra Women’s project, about women’s experiences of domestic abuse in the perinatal period and we then discuss Amy’s new research collaboration on women’s experiences of Far-right radicalisation.Links to Amy’s book & film recommendations:For Space - Doreen MasseyFeminist City: A Field Guide - Leslie KernEpistemic Injustice: Power & the Ethics of Knowing by Miranda Fricker | GoodreadsBehind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com

In this interview, I speak to Dr Sharon Jagger. Sharon is an Associate Professor of Religion at York St John University. I ask Sharon about her trajectory through higher education and her experiences within the institution. We talk about the concept of belonging, and non-belonging, within University spaces. We also discuss Sharon’s research on women and the Church of England, where she explores how gender is socially constructed through beliefs and institutions and how doctrine in the Church of England polices the boundaries of gender. We then talk about Sharon’s research on Goddess and Witch spiritualities, which operate outside of those institutional parameters, and how the appeal to the feminine divine can work to rescue denigrated ‘feminine’ traits. Find more of Sharon’s research, here: Staff profiles : Sharon Jagger | York St John UniversityLinks to Sharon’s book & film recommendations:Shulamith Firestone – The Dialectic of Sex: The Case for Feminist RevolutionSophie Lewis - Enemy Feminisms: TERFs, Policewomen, and Girlbosses Against LiberationBehind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com

In this episode I interview Professor Esther McIntosh. Esther is a Professor of Feminist Theology and Ethics, and director of the Centre for Religion in Society at York St John University. As well as the journey to her Professorship and her experiences of the institution, Esther discusses two of her key research areas. Esther shares her work on The Trans and Non-Binary Staff and Students Project, a two-year project hearing the voices of trans and non-binary staff and students across universities. We also talk about Esther’s research into Palestine solidarity as a feminist, theological and ethical issue. Find out more about Esther’s research, here: Esther McIntosh - Research at York St John UniversityLinks to Esther’s book & film recommendations:Sara Ahmed Living a Feminist LifeNatasha Walter Living Dolls: The Return of SexismVirginia Woolf A Room of One’s OwnFilm: Promising Young WomanBehind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com

In this episode I remotely interview Professor Alison Phipps. Alison is a Professor of Political Sociology, and Associate Head of SPIRe (Social sciences, Politics, International Relations and Religion) at York St John University. As well as finding out about Alison’s journey into academia, I ask about her new book, entitled ‘Sexual Violence in Racial Capitalism’. The book is the result of more than two decades of research, teaching and activism, and develops a political economy of sexual violence, and explains how the concepts of race and coloniality are as absolutely central as gender. You can find out more about Alison’s research, here: https://phipps.space Discount codes:You can use the discount code ‘OTH583’ for 50% off Alison’s new book, Sexual Violence in Racial Capitalism (https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526147349/), or her book, Me, Not You: The Trouble With Mainstream Feminism (https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526155801/)Links to Alison’s book recommendations:Everything was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves | GoodreadsWayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments: Intimate Histories of Riotous Black Girls, Troublesome Women, and Queer Radicals by Saidiya Hartman | GoodreadsBehind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com

In this episode I interview Dr Eeva Sointu. Eeva is an Associate Professor in Sociology and co-lead of the Sociology courses at York St John University. I ask Eeva about her journey into academia, her experiences within it, and the book she is currently writing. Eeva’s book is provisionally entitled ‘The clitoris: A social history’. The book explores how knowledge about the body, including the sexual body, is always socially and historically located and intensely political. You can find out more about Eeva’s work here: Sointu, Dr Eeva - Research at York St John.Eeva’s book recommendations:Formations of Class & Gender: Becoming Respectable by Beverley SkeggsBehind The Research: Conversations in Sex, Gender and Feminist research was created, produced and hosted by Holly Murphy with audio production by Samantha Goddard. This podcast was made possible by QR funding from York St John University School of Humanities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit behindtheresearchpod.substack.com