Dr Rebecca F Taylor BA MA PhD (Essex)

Lecturer in Sociology, Director of Undergraduate Programmes

Rebecca Taylor joined the Department of Sociology Social Policy and Criminology in 2015 as a Lecturer in Sociology with an interest in work and employment and expertise in qualitative methodologies.

My main focus is on the diversity of forms of unpaid work; not only volunteering but internships, working for free, and the development of open source software.

Prior to her role at Southampton Rebecca was a Lecturer in Sociology from Oxford Brookes University, a research fellow at the University of Birmingham at the ESRC funded Third Sector Research Centre (TSRC) and before that at the Policy Studies Institute (PSI) in London. She is sociologist of work, employment and organisations with broad interests that span conceptual debates about paid and unpaid work; the nature of careers occupations and professions; and employment policies and programmes. Her doctoral research at the University of Essex sought to conceptualise paid and unpaid work and explored the classed and gendered divisions of labour.

Recent publications have included an article on the experiences of providers in the field of employment services for the journal Policy and politics; a chapter on volunteering for the Sage Handbook of the Sociology of Work and Employment and an article on unpaid work and the Reddit rebellion for The Conversation.

Rebecca also has over 10 years research experience and a longstanding interest in qualitative methodologies, particularly qualitative longitudinal research and research ethics. She is member of Quest a group that brings together staff from across the University who have expertise in the development, application and teaching of qualitative methods. - See more at: https://www.quest.soton.ac.uk/#sthash.38hgqZbx.dpuf