Professor Sarah Stevenage BSc, PhD
Professor of Cognitive Psychology, Associate Dean (Education) for the Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences

Sarah Stevenage is Professor of Cognitive Psychology and Associate Dean (Education) for the Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences at the University of Southampton.
Academic qualifications
- BSc Psychology, University of Exeter
- PhD Psychology (Face perception), University of Exeter
- Chartered Psychologist
- Associate Fellow of the BPS
- Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Biography
My interest in Psychology began through my degree, and later my PhD at the University of Exeter, under the supervision of Dr Ian Gordon. I came to Southampton in 1993, and have stayed here ever since. With a primary interest in face perception, I was naturally drawn to the area of Cognitive Psychology, and my undergraduate and postgraduate teaching has been focused mainly in the areas of Memory, Face Perception, and more recently Forensic Psychology. With a passion for teaching, and for making the experience of my students really enjoyable and interactive, I was awarded the VC’s Teaching Award on two occasions and all of my administrative roles have been focused on improving the experience of our students. Most recently, these include the roles of Head of Psychology, and Associate Dean (Education) for the Faculty. In 2017, I was also recognized for my Strategic Leadership in Teaching and Learning through being awarded the role of Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academic, which is the highest award of the professional body overseeing University-level education.
In terms of research, my main focus is on Identity and Identification, as judged through face perception, gait and most recently voice perception. These interests have culminated in my role as lead investigator on a £2m EPSRC project – SuperIdentity – across 7 institutions in the US and the UK, and my involvement in a number of government and Research Council initiatives to understand identity better within a modern and digital environment.
That's me!