·       Working with professionals to understand & improve workplace wellbeing https://www.swell-staff.com/

·       Working with partners to respond to clinical/workplace need & to find evidence-based solutions

·       Developing & evaluating interventions through stakeholder engagement

·       Building skills in qualitative evidence synthesis to broaden the evidence-base informing healthcare

Prof Shaw is internationally renowned for the advancement of applied qualitative research in psychological and health sciences, which has contributed to the acceptance of qualitative research as a rigorous source of scientific evidence. Her work has informed the World Health Organization's Guide to Qualitative Evidence Synthesis, mandated the teaching of qualitative methods on BPS accredited BSc Psychology programmes, and informed the development of quality appraisal strategies for qualitative research. 

Prof Shaw's research has made substantive, methodological and conceptual contributions to the field. Substantively, her work has provided rigorous, in-depth lived experience accounts of illness diagnosis, living with illness, treatment development, management, intervention development and evaluation. This contribution has provided evidence for a number of NICE Guidelines.

Conceptually, Prof Shaw's work has brought together quantitative and qualitative methods with psychological and philosophical theories to provide the best possible explanation (Peirce’s pragmatism) for our research findings which enable us to make sound recommendations for practice. This is evidenced by successful impact – citations in WHO and NICE guidelines and international government policy – and by the high esteem in which she is held by international organisations including the European Health Psychology Society, the American Psychological Association’s Society for Qualitative Inquiry, and the British Psychological Society.

With this solid base to Prof Shaw's research and reputation, she has been able to capture research funding that focuses on responding to clinical need by developing and evaluating psychological interventions in healthcare that are based on empirical and theoretical evidence. Prof Shaw works closely with key beneficiaries - healthcare providers, patients, families, local and national organisations – to do research that will make a difference to people’s lives.