Anna Crossland
Associate Lecturer (Maternity Cover)
Profile
Biography
- BSc (Hons) in Psychology, University of Sheffield, UK, 2001-2004
- MRes in Psychology, University of York, UK, 2017-2018
- MA in Social Research, University of York, UK, 2020-2021
- PhD candidate, University of York, UK, 2021-2025 (current)
Career
I taught psychology A-level for 12 years in North Yorkshire, before going back to university for postgraduate study. I also co-authored a textbook for A-level psychology and several revision tools.
Departmental roles
- GTA Cordinator
- In the Psychology department I have worked as a Research Associate in 3 different labs, and as an Outreach officer, Graduate Teaching Assistant and administration assistant. I have also run sessions and helped to organise outreach events such as Psych! York and University summer schools.
University roles
I have delivered adult learning for the Institute for Lifelong Learning at the University of York, developed and presented courses to sixth form students and run a team of undergraduate students developing support and resources to support potential students.
Research
Overview
Piloting the use of body illusions for treating Anorexia Nervosa
Projects
My PhD project focusses on interoception in the perinatal period. Interoception is the awareness and perception of visceral feelings, which may be different in pregnancy. The project will focus on understanding these differences between how pregnant and no-pregnant women perceive and interpret their visceral signals. This will involve developing and validating a self-report measurement of interoception, and testing whether current measures of interoception are valid during pregnancy. We will also test whether interoceptive abilities during pregnancy have any relationship with body satisfaction in the perinatal period, and on postnatal outcomes.
Grants
- I am funded by ESRC on the AQM pathway
Collaborators
- Dr Catherine Preston
- Dr Liz Kirk (Anglia Ruskin University)
Teaching
Undergraduate
- GTA sessions with year 1 and 2 students on Research Methods, Perception & Cognition (P+C), Social, Personality & Abnormal (SPA), Brain & Behaviour (B+B) and Development & Learning (D+L). Marking on Research Methods, Perception & Cognition (P+C), Social, Personality & Abnormal (SPA) and Development & Learning (D+L).
- Developing and teaching ‘Introduction to Psychology’ and 'Health Psychology' (credited courses) and teaching a short course on mental health, for the Centre for Lifelong Learning.
- SPID 2
Postgraduate
- Clinical Research Methods
- GTA work on the Postgraduate Research Methods (Education)
- Module Leader for Clinical Research Methods (Developmental Disorders and Clinical Practice MSc)
Other teaching
- A-level psychology (2005-2017)
Publications
Selected publications
Crossland, A. E., Munns, L., Preston, C. E. J. (2025). Analysing the factor structure of the MAIA scale for pregnant women: Development of the MAIA-Preg.
Munns, L., Spark, N., Crossland, A. Preston, C. (2024) Systematic Review on the Effects of Yoga for Postnatal Mental Health and Well-being.
Hansford, K., Crossland, A., Baker, D., Preston, C. E. J., McKenzie, K. (2024). Understanding barriers and facilitators to non-pharmaceutical chronic pain research engagement.
Munns, L. B., Crossland, A. E., McPherson, M., Panagiotopoulou, E., & Preston, C. E. J. (2024). Developing a new measure of retrospective body dissatisfaction: links to postnatal bonding and psychological well-being.
Stafford, L., Munns, L, Crossland, A., Kirk, E and Preston, C. (2024) Bonding with Bump: interoceptive sensibility moderates the relationship between pregnancy body satisfaction and antenatal attachment.
Crossland, A. E., Munns, L., Kirk, E., & Preston, C. E. J. (2023). Comparing body image dissatisfaction between pregnant women and non-pregnant women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Crossland, A., Kirk, E., & Preston, C. (2022). Interoceptive sensibility and body satisfaction in pregnant and non-pregnant women with and without children.
