Dr Rebecca Yeates
- Position: Research Director
- Areas of expertise: workplace wellbeing; organisational psychology; gender diversity; chronic health conditions; third-wave psychological approaches.
- Email: R.A.Yeates@leeds.ac.uk
- Location: 10.95 Level 10 Worsley Building
Profile
I am the Research Director on the Clinical Psychology Training Programme at the University of Leeds. I oversee all aspects of research on the programme, including the research assignments and the doctoral thesis.
I also work clinically in the NHS as Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust’s lead psychologist for staff wellbeing.
Research interests
Broadly, my research interests fall within the area of how an individual’s identity relates to their mental health. Most of my own research and my supervision of others focuses on three broad groups of identities: workplace roles; gender and sexuality; and chronic health conditions. I am particularly interested in how adolescents and young adults navigate developmental transitions when they interact with aspects of their identity.
A large proportion of my research supervision has been focused on investigating the psychological wellbeing of young gender diverse people. This has included identifying psychological constructs, such as self-compassion, which can potentially support coping efforts before and during gender exploration and/or transition. We have also commenced projects to assess the quality of clinical decision making resources and procedures. I am particularly interested to hear from individuals interested in conducting DClin or Phd projects in this area with this shared goal.
I am also interested in the psychological health of NHS colleagues and this overlaps with my NHS clinical role. I am interested in designing and evaluating workplace interventions which can support healthcare staff’s emotional wellbeing, such as group debriefing, recognising the significant challenges they face at present. I am also interested in identifying the organisational and system-based factors which can impede or assist the implementation of such interventions.
Recent/current research supervision
- Chrissie Lane (2022-25): Case series investigating the effectiveness of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) debriefing
- Rebecca Curran (2022-25): Investigation of UK CAMHS clinicians’ confidence working therapeutically with young gender diverse people
- Joe Coleman (2022-25): Delphi study of UK gender experts on the core components of a developmental gender assessment
- Ellen Tomlinson (2021-24): Self-compassion and ‘burnout’ in UK oncology nurses
- Rachael Jones (2021-24): How do staff working in gender diverse and eating disorder clinical services construct co-occuring gender diversity and eating difficulties
- Karmen Au-Yeung (2021-24): Environmental scan of publically avaliable resources for the use of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues (puberty blockers) in young gender diverse people
- Thomas Carter (2021-24): Does gender and sexuality discourse relate to bisexual mens construction and experience of their mental health
- Elizabeth Warden (2020-23, Sheffield): Experiences of accessing societal instutions in relation to the identities of trans youth
- Scott Roache (2020-23): Exploring individual’s experience of parenting a gender diverse young person
- Chloe Lack (2019-22): Trait self-compassion and psychological outcomes in gender diverse young people
- Eva Ma (2019-22): Experiences of social transition in young people assigned male at birth
- Bethany Carrington (2019-22): Understanding non-improvement in psychological therapy: A qualitative meta-synthesis
- Annie Wray (2018-21, Sheffield): Investigating the effectiveness of a self-compassion intervention for parents of children with IBD
Research Grants
- Crohn's & Colitis UK. Rowse, G., Yeates, R., Sirois, F., Brooks, A., & Lobo, A. A pilot and feasibility trial of a group mindfulness and self-compassion intervention for young people diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. (awarded in 2018). £118,000
Qualifications
- Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy) - University of Sheffield, 2017
- Masters in Applied Forensic Psychology (Msc) - University of York, 2010
- Psychology and Philosophy (Bsc, Hons), University of Leeds, 2008
Professional memberships
- Health and Care Professions Council
Research groups and institutes
- Leeds Institute of Health Sciences