Dr Kate Carr-Fanning
PhD, BA Hons, PG Cert
Current positions
Honorary Lecturer
School of Education
Contact
Press and media
Many of our academics speak to the media as experts in their field of research. If you are a journalist, please contact the University’s Media and PR Team:
Biography
My interest in psychology and education came from working in special provision (schools and charities) in the USA and Ireland, mostly with children with social, emotional, and mental health difficulties.
I completed my B.A. in Psychology before undertaking my PhD in Psychology and Education in the School of Education in Trinity College Dublin (TCD). My Ph.D. studied stress, emotion, and coping with children with ADHD in order to get an understanding of their lived experience - what they found stressful, how they coped, and what helped them to cope. I wanted to work with these children, and so co-constructed the research methods with children with ADHD across a number of studies - we adapted art therapy techniques to facilitate children’s voice.
Over the years, my research has built on what I started in my Ph.D. which includes developing an understanding of how we can access children’s voice and give them opportunities to be involved in decisions (e.g., in education or mental health services). It's expanded to other stakeholders (like parents and teachers) working with them to co-construct knowledge and educational practices.
My work has largely focused on understanding and responding to the needs of learners with social, emotional, and mental health difficulties – looking at things like family dynamics, strengths-based education, executive functions in education, empowerment in education, females with neurodivergences, and programs of inclusion. I’m also interested in how lay people understand and explain mental health difficulties and challenging behaviours, and how these impact the process of inclusion.
I draw on a range of areas within psychology (including development, social, and educational psychology) and am interested in how we can use psychology to create more inclusive schools.
I completed my B.A. in Psychology before undertaking my PhD in Psychology and Education in the School of Education in Trinity College Dublin (TCD). My Ph.D. studied stress, emotion, and coping with children with ADHD in order to get an understanding of their lived experience - what they found stressful, how they coped, and what helped them to cope. I wanted to work with these children, and so co-constructed the research methods with children with ADHD across a number of studies - we adapted art therapy techniques to facilitate children’s voice.
Over the years, my research has built on what I started in my Ph.D. which includes developing an understanding of how we can access children’s voice and give them opportunities to be involved in decisions (e.g., in education or mental health services). It's expanded to other stakeholders (like parents and teachers) working with them to co-construct knowledge and educational practices.
My work has largely focused on understanding and responding to the needs of learners with social, emotional, and mental health difficulties – looking at things like family dynamics, strengths-based education, executive functions in education, empowerment in education, females with neurodivergences, and programs of inclusion. I’m also interested in how lay people understand and explain mental health difficulties and challenging behaviours, and how these impact the process of inclusion.
I draw on a range of areas within psychology (including development, social, and educational psychology) and am interested in how we can use psychology to create more inclusive schools.
Teaching
I teach across units on the BSc and MSc in Psychology of Education
Research Methods and Statistics I - exploring questions about what we can know about the social world, the different approaches and methods we can use to develop such knowledge, and focus particularly on qualitative analysis.
Debates in Psychology of Education - I explore a number of big debatable questions, like is research ethical, do we have free will, should we use psychological testing, what’s the difference between males and females?
Atypical development – I teach on a number of topics, including strengths-based education, resilience, Mental Health, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Social and cultural aspects to developmental disorders, and trauma-informed education
Children and Young People’s Mental Health – I teach a number of different topics, including aetiology (or cause) of mental health difficulties, attachment, trauma, positive education, socio-emotional sills and their impact on learning and development, and educational responses (prevention, promotion, and intervention)
Research Methods and Statistics I - exploring questions about what we can know about the social world, the different approaches and methods we can use to develop such knowledge, and focus particularly on qualitative analysis.
Debates in Psychology of Education - I explore a number of big debatable questions, like is research ethical, do we have free will, should we use psychological testing, what’s the difference between males and females?
Atypical development – I teach on a number of topics, including strengths-based education, resilience, Mental Health, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Social and cultural aspects to developmental disorders, and trauma-informed education
Children and Young People’s Mental Health – I teach a number of different topics, including aetiology (or cause) of mental health difficulties, attachment, trauma, positive education, socio-emotional sills and their impact on learning and development, and educational responses (prevention, promotion, and intervention)