Jo Coulson
Jo is currently funded part-time as a Research Associate on the NPRI-funded Project OPAL: Older People and Active Living. She is simultaneously studying part-time for a PhD. The title of her work is “Older adults: their neighbourhood and its relationship with their physical activity patterns and well-being.”
Jo first joined the department back in 2002. A non-traditional pathway led her to the department’s Masters in Nutrition, Physical Activity and Public Health and Jo graduated in 2004 with distinction. Her dissertation was a randomised cross-over trial with focus groups, exploring how exercising at work influences work performance and mood. This was recently published and attracted wide media attention. For further information, please refer to our press release and read an example of coverage here.
Jo worked for two years as Bristol’s smoke-free public places advisor. This health improvement specialist post was based within Bristol Primary Care Trust’s Directorate for Public Health (tobacco control). It aimed to reduce local people’s exposure to second-hand smoke. Jo ran Bristol’s ‘Easy Breathing’ directories and encouraged cultural change across pubs and eateries. This was during the run-up to the introduction of the UK’s smoke-free public places legislation. It was an exciting, albeit challenging, introduction to the complexities of behavioural and attitudinal change.
Jo is Bristolian ‘born and bred,’ and proud of this accolade! Her mainstays for keeping active are classes such as BodyJam, Balance and Combat. However, she believes variety is the spice of life and that this approach might hold the secret to keeping moving through the life-course.
Jo re-joined the department in 2005 to help Ken Fox and his team evaluate the Dings environmental intervention. She project-managed this British Heart Foundation-funded research project for a year. Project OPAL keeps Jo busy at present. However, she has also recently contributed to the following MSc units: Research Methods (Qualitative research: theory and practice) and Physical activity and nutrition interventions (Project OPAL: insights from insiders).
Jo’s research interests include:
- physical activity and mental health
- physical activity in the workplace
- reducing environmental and neighbourhood barriers to being physical active
- social support for physical activity, and the influence of social capital
- streamlining research with practice and delivery
- qualitative and mixed methods research
- active ageing
Jo and colleagues recently won a bid for the Research Staff Project Fund. She will soon be delivering Plain English training to research staff across the University of Bristol.
For more information on Jo’s current research activities, please visit the Project OPAL pages.
Selected publications and conference contributions
Coulson J C, McKenna J, Field M. (2008). Exercising at work and self-reported work performance. International Journal of Workplace Health Management. 1, 3, 176-197.
Coulson J C, Fox K R, McKenna J, Stathi A. (September 2008). The OPAL qualitative sub-study: Getting out and about in ‘Getting out and about: the role of physical activity and neighbourhood in older people’s lives.’ Annual Conference of The British Society of Gerontology (Symposium). Bristol, UK.
Coulson J C, Fox K R. (2007). The Dings Home Zone and Cycle-walkway, UK in (Schoeppe S, Baubach M, eds) Tackling obesity by creating healthy residential environments. Copenhagen: World Health Organization Europe. 71-79.
Coulson J C, Maudsley M. (2007). Playing it safe. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. 61, 10, 876.
Coulson J C, Trayers T. (2007). D for Division or Dream? Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. 61, 1, 5.
Coulson J C, Trayers T, Cooper A R, Deem R, Fox K R, Hillsdon M, Lawlor D A, Ness A R, Riddoch C J. (July 2006). Physical activity levels and attitudes towards their neighbourhood in school children from a deprived, inner city area in ‘Planning and designing healthy public spaces for young people in the 21st century.’ University of the West of England conference, Bristol (poster).
Coulson J C. (May 2006). Lay versus Professional Priorities: evaluation of environmental change on lifestyle and physical activity behaviour (The Dings, Bristol) in ‘6th annual Better Health Seminar’ hosted by South Gloucestershire Council & Primary Care Trust.