Dr Tabitha Baker
- talicebaker at bournemouth dot ac dot uk
- http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2131-8953
- Senior Lecturer in Humanities and Law
- Weymouth House W404, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, BH12 5BB
Biography
I am a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Humanities and Law, within the Faculty of Media and Communication. I earned my PhD in 2022 with a thesis entitled The Psychosocial Relationship between National Identity and Political Sentiment in England: 2016-2020, which examined the evolving dynamics of national identity and political attitudes among rural citizens in response to major social, political, and economic shifts in the early 21st century. As a social science researcher, my thesis adopted a psychosocial approach which integrated political and sociological ideas with psychoanalytical approaches to understand defence mechanisms at individual and collective level within society.
My teaching spans Humanities, Politics, Law and Media programmes, covering topics in Psychology, Politics, Media, International Relations, Global Governance, Law, and socio-political History in 20th-21st century Britain. I currently lead the academic programme for the Faculty's cross-programme Foundation Year, overseeing subject pathways (Law, Media and Communication), staff planning, academic delivery, programme and student data evaluation...
Building on my doctoral research, my interests are multidisciplinary, focusing on national, regional, and local identities, civic engagement, marginalization, and democratic empowerment. I am a social science researcher specialising in qualitative approaches. I was a PI on a research project funded by a successful British Academy grant (2023-2024), which explored a micro-level analysis of local democracy and regional identities during periods of crisis and local government reorganization. I am currently a co-I on a British Academy funded research project 'Skatallite Towns' which explores the politics of resistance through pop culture and music, focussing on the Ska movement in regional England (2025-2027)
I serve as a Trustee of Citizens Advice Central Dorset and the Dorset Race Equality Council.
I welcome cross-disciplinary collaboration, creative practice, and engagement with external, local, and third-sector communities. I can be contacted at talicebaker@bournemouth.ac.uk.
moreExpertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person's work contributes towards the following SDGs:
Peace, justice and strong institutions
"Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels"
Journal Articles
- Baker, T.A., 2024. ‘We all just want a flag to get behind’: the politics of English national identity. National Identities, 26 (2), 123-139.
- Baker, T.A., 2022. The EU's Impact on Identity Formation in East-Central Europe Between 2004 and 2013. Perceptions of the Nation and Europe in Political Parties of the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia. EUROPE-ASIA STUDIES, 74 (5), 877-879.
- Baker, T., 2021. Is there hope for the West Country? Political sentiment amongst rural voters. Renewal: Journal of Social Democracy, 29 (3), 73-83.
Chapters
- Baker, T. and Lilleker, D., 2022. “Not One Rule for Everyone”: The Impact of Elite Rule-Breaking on Public Trust in the UK. In: Maarek, P., ed. Manufacturing Government Communication on Covid-19 A Comparative Perspective. Springer.
Reports
- Baker, T., 2024. Who defines Britain? National identity at the heart of the 2024 UK General Election, In: UK Election Analysis 2024: Media, Voters and the Campaign. Centre for Comparative Politics and Media Research (Bournemouth University). Available from: https://www.electionanalysis.uk/.
Internet Publications
- Baker, T., 2024. Politics ‘beneath the surface’.
Theses
- Baker, T., 2022. The psychosocial relationship between national identity and political sentiment in England: 2016-2020. PhD Thesis. Bournemouth University, Faculty of Media and Communication.
Films
- Local Democracy in Times of Crisis: Exploring the Politics of BCP Council, 2024. Film. Available from: https://vimeo.com/922525384?share=copy.
Others
- Baker, T., 2020. The othering of migrants has negative consequences for society at large. LSE. Published online.
PhD Students
- Callum Blades. The Psychodynamics of Conspiracy Culture and Contemporary Politics
- Kieran Clarke. A Historical Analysis of 1960 – 1963 and Ethnicization in Post-Colonial Kenyan Politics
- Madhumita Nandi. Psychoanalytic Journeys: Colonialism and English Identity
- Ruth Llewellyn. Playing through the pandemic: Psychoanalysis and Gaming
Profile of Teaching PG
- Issues and Debates in Political Psychology
- Dissertation supervision
- International Relations and Public Diplomacy
- Psychodynamics of Emotion
Profile of Teaching UG
- Psychology of Politics
- International relations, state power and public diplomacy
- Understanding Contemporary Britain
- Dissertation supervision
- Foundations of International Relations
- Law and Government
- Media and Society
- Academic and Professional Practice
- Introduction to Communication Theory
Invited Lectures
-
The Politics of English Identity in Rural England more
'A countryside for all?' - Centre for English Identity - University of Southampton organised by Professor John Denham -
The Political Psychology of Defence Mechanisms, Edinburgh, Scotland, 13 Oct 2022 more
‘The Political Positions Between Us: Can Psychology Depolarise the Public?’ Royal Society of Edinburgh
Grants
- Skatillite Towns: An Oral History of Two Town and Ska in Regional England (British Academy, 01 Jul 2025). Awarded
- Local Democracy in a Time of Crisis (British Academy, 01 Nov 2023). Completed
- Two Tone Towns: A Social History of Ska in Dorset (ESRC Festival of Social Science, 01 Oct 2023). Completed
- Research visit to Center for Social and Cultural Psychology, Université libre de Bruxelles (Erasmus+, 01 May 2023). Completed
External Responsibilities
- Citizens Advice Central Dorset, Trustee (2024-)
- Dorset Race Equality Council, Trustee (2024-)
- Political Studies Association - Political Psychology Specialist Group, Committee member (2021-), https://www.psa.ac.uk/specialist-groups/political-psychology
Honours
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE, 2021)
External Media and Press
- UK General Election announcement - analysis of Sunak's speech, BBC Radio Solent, 22 May 2024. https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fmy.tvey.es%2FJx53S&data=05%7C02%7Cinternalcomms%40bournemouth.ac.uk%7C0439a40008104aa6bd6f08dc7afee378%7Cede29655d09742e4bbb5f38d427fbfb8%7C0%7C0%7C638520482347402806%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PYTp4iX%2B57mtemtSrg0yhR5yQ%2FSjsVDsiP7gQrCxYBw%3D&reserved=0
- General Election 2024 - political parties and their strategies, Greatest Hits, 22 May 2024. https://mms.tveyes.com/MediaView/?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
- Politics ‘beneath the surface’, British Psychological Society Magazine, 24 Apr 2024. https://www.bps.org.uk/psychologist/politics-beneath-surface
- Why do English people love oppression?, Dazed, 20 Sep 2022. https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/56983/1/nation-of-bootlickers-why-do-the-english-love-oppression-queen-royal-family
- Boris Johnson resignation analysis, BBC Solent Dorset, 08 Jul 2022. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0ccwx3d
- By-election analysis, BBC Radio Solent, 24 Jun 2022. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0c97csj
- Tiverton and Honiton byelection: rural voters are itching for a chance to cast a protest vote, The Conversation, 20 Jun 2022. https://theconversation.com/tiverton-and-honiton-byelection-rural-voters-are-itching-for-a-chance-to-cast-a-protest-vote-185236?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=bylinetwitterbutton
- What to expect from post-pandemic voting behaviour, The Conversation, 28 Jul 2021. https://theconversation.com/what-to-expect-from-post-pandemic-voting-behaviour-162293
- The othering of migrants has negative consequences for society at large, LSE Blog, 19 Aug 2020. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2020/08/19/the-othering-of-migrants-has-negative-consequences-for-society-at-large/
- The affective nature of Brexit’s geographical polarisation, NEXTEUK - Queen Mary University London, 10 Jun 2020. https://www.qmul.ac.uk/nexteuk/publications/blog/items/the-affective-nature-of-brexits-geographical-polarisation-.html