Dr. Vanessa May

Biography

Vanessa May completed her PhD at Abo Akademi University, Finland, in 2001. From 2002 to 2005, she worked at the Centre for Research on Families, Kinship & Childhood at the University of Leeds. In 2005, she joined the Department of Sociology at the University of Manchester, where she currently serves as the Head of Sociology and was the Co-Director of the Morgan Centre for Research on Everyday Lives from 2018 to 2022. She is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and serves as the Publications Director for the British Sociological Association. Her research interests primarily focus on self, belonging, migration, family life, and temporality, specifically exploring themes such as post-divorce parenting and intergenerational relationships. Methodologically, Vanessa employs mixed methods, qualitative interviewing, and narrative analysis, involving substantial research on aging in the context of migration, including various projects associated with the Center of Excellence in Research on Aging and Care in Finland. She has co-led platforms like the Innovative Methods for the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health at Kings College London, and has been involved in numerous research initiatives assessing the impact of neighborhood on aging experiences. Her past projects include a cross-national comparative study on children's socio-emotional wellbeing and daily family life, demonstrating her commitment to understanding complex social dynamics.

Research Interests

Experience