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Dr Helen Nichols' Outputs (17)

‘Hammering on the pressure’: Prison governor well‐being and the need for a more humanised approach (2025)
Journal Article
Smith, L., Harrison, K., Mason, R., Nichols, H., Hall, L., & Saunders, G. (online). ‘Hammering on the pressure’: Prison governor well‐being and the need for a more humanised approach. The Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, https://doi.org/10.1111/hojo.12595

The challenges of prison work and the impact on the well-being of prison officers is widely publicised. However, less is known about the well-being of prison governors, and what may impact this: the focus of this research. Semi-structured interviews... Read More about ‘Hammering on the pressure’: Prison governor well‐being and the need for a more humanised approach.

‘Strengthen Them Inside’: Supporting Prison Staff Wellbeing in England through Creative Writing (2025)
Journal Article
Nichols, H., Metcalf, J., Earle, F., & Fréour, L. (2025). ‘Strengthen Them Inside’: Supporting Prison Staff Wellbeing in England through Creative Writing. Incarceration, 6, https://doi.org/10.1177/26326663241310334

Prison staff experience multiple stressors in the course of their working lives and existing literature consistently emphasises the negative wellbeing implications of prison work. There is a gap in existing research regarding the types of wellbeing s... Read More about ‘Strengthen Them Inside’: Supporting Prison Staff Wellbeing in England through Creative Writing.

It’s not ok to not be ok . . . when you’re a prison governor:The impact of workplace culture on prison governors’ wellbeing in England, Scotland and Wales (2024)
Journal Article
Nichols, H., Saunders, G., Harrison, K., Mason, R., Smith, L., & Hall, L. (2024). It’s not ok to not be ok . . . when you’re a prison governor:The impact of workplace culture on prison governors’ wellbeing in England, Scotland and Wales. Incarceration, 5, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1177/26326663241253698

The wellbeing of prison governors has received little attention in penological research to date. The findings of this research reveal that governors’ wellbeing is negatively impacted by a dominant Masculinity Contest Culture (MCC) permeating through... Read More about It’s not ok to not be ok . . . when you’re a prison governor:The impact of workplace culture on prison governors’ wellbeing in England, Scotland and Wales.

Words Behind Walls: Prison Staff Writing (2023)
Book
Metcalf, J., Nichols, H., Westoby, C., & Clement, J. (Eds.). (2023). Words Behind Walls: Prison Staff Writing. Butcher's Dog Publishing

This anthology of writings stemmed from a University of Hull project that offered bespoke creative writing workshops to staff at both HMP Hull and HMP Manchester. The team wanted to support employees in a role that government and academic research re... Read More about Words Behind Walls: Prison Staff Writing.

Balancing Sympathy and Empathy in an Emotive Discipline (2022)
Book Chapter
Nichols, H., & Humphrey, V. (2022). Balancing Sympathy and Empathy in an Emotive Discipline. In S. Young, & K. Strudwick (Eds.), Teaching Criminology and Criminal Justice : Challenges for Higher Education (179-198). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-14899-6_9

This chapter considers the challenge of balancing sympathy and empathy in the emotive discipline of criminology grounded in an introductory discussion of pedagogies of empathy. With a focus on the study of prisons, the chapter considers some of the o... Read More about Balancing Sympathy and Empathy in an Emotive Discipline.

Probation and COVID-19: Lessons learned to improve health-related practice (2022)
Journal Article
Sirdfield, C., Nichols, H., & Mullen, P. (2022). Probation and COVID-19: Lessons learned to improve health-related practice. Probation Journal, 69(2), 216-234. https://doi.org/10.1177/02645505221087980

Probation staff perform a health-related role involving identifying health-related drivers of offending behaviour; facilitating access to support for these, including continuity of care for people leaving prison; and advising the courts on appropriat... Read More about Probation and COVID-19: Lessons learned to improve health-related practice.

Understanding the Educational Experiences of Imprisoned Men (2021)
Book
Nichols, H. (2021). Understanding the Educational Experiences of Imprisoned Men. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429323850

Understanding the Educational Experiences of Imprisoned Men explores how adult male prisoners interpret and give value to their experiences of education, presenting an opportunity to consider how education can be beneficial to prisoners including and... Read More about Understanding the Educational Experiences of Imprisoned Men.

Does Lecture Format Matter? Exploring Student Preferences in Higher Education (2020)
Journal Article
Young, S., Nichols, H., & Cartwright, A. (2020). Does Lecture Format Matter? Exploring Student Preferences in Higher Education. Journal of Perspectives in Applied Academic Practice, 8(1), 30-40

This article offers a contribution to understanding students’ perceptions of lectures based on different formats of lecture delivery. The growth in the use of synchronous and asynchronous learning for lecture delivery raises questions as to whether s... Read More about Does Lecture Format Matter? Exploring Student Preferences in Higher Education.

HIGHER EDUCATION IN HIGH SECURITY: MEANINGFUL EDUCATION EXPERIENCES IN THE ABSENCE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES (2018)
Journal Article
Nichols, H. (2018). HIGHER EDUCATION IN HIGH SECURITY: MEANINGFUL EDUCATION EXPERIENCES IN THE ABSENCE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES. Advancing Corrections Journal, 70-80

This paper introduces the reader to a course taught at a High Security prison in the UK to a combined group of serving prisoners and university students. Within this paper, the implications of the absence of technology in the prison classroom are con... Read More about HIGHER EDUCATION IN HIGH SECURITY: MEANINGFUL EDUCATION EXPERIENCES IN THE ABSENCE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES.

A reflexive evaluation of technology-enhanced learning (2017)
Journal Article
Young, S., & Nichols, H. (2017). A reflexive evaluation of technology-enhanced learning. Research in Learning Technology, 25, https://doi.org/10.25304/rlt.v25.1998

This article explores the lived experiences of two academics in a UK Higher Education Institution who have embedded digital learning approaches within their curriculum delivery. Achieving student excellence can be impeded by a lack of engagement and... Read More about A reflexive evaluation of technology-enhanced learning.

Encouragement, Discouragement and Connection: The Role of Relationships in Prison Education Experiences (2017)
Journal Article
Nichols, H. (2017). Encouragement, Discouragement and Connection: The Role of Relationships in Prison Education Experiences. Prison service journal, 4-10

Existing literature in the field of prison education often focuses on rates of reoffending, conceptions and understandings of personal change and the correlation between increased educational attainment and employability. More recently, with the publ... Read More about Encouragement, Discouragement and Connection: The Role of Relationships in Prison Education Experiences.

Learning from the Covid-19 Pandemic: Probation’s Role in Providing Health-Related Support
Book Chapter
Sirdifield, C., Nichols, H., & Mullen, P. (in press). Learning from the Covid-19 Pandemic: Probation’s Role in Providing Health-Related Support. In E. Johnston (Ed.), Covid-19 and Criminal Justice : Impact and Legacy in England and Wales (201-216). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003281481

This chapter examines the issues Covid-19 caused for the probation service. The chapter suggests that health, health inequalities, and the social determinants of health have been in the spotlight like never before throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. Pe... Read More about Learning from the Covid-19 Pandemic: Probation’s Role in Providing Health-Related Support.