Dr Hannah Fawcett BSc (hons), MSc, PhD, PGCE LTHE, FHEA
Senior Lecturer, Undergraduate Psychology Programme Leader
Forensic Psychology Lecturer with specialism in juror decision making, deception and alibi evidence
My profile
Biography
Dr Hannah Fawcett is a Senior Lecturer and Undergraduate Programme Leader in the Department of Psychology
I am the programme leader for the BSc Psychology, BSc Psychology with Counselling and Psychotherapy, BSc Forensic Psychology. My teaching is focused on the BSc Forensic Psychology programme where I lead and teach units, and supervise dissertation student projects.
My research interests lie in courtroom psychology. I am particularly interested in how evidence is provided in court, and the way in which jurors understand, evaluate and use evidence in their decision making process.
My PhD research focused on the provision and evaluation of alibi evidence in the courtroom.
I have provided expert consultancy to a number of charities and organisations on the themes of witness and offender behaviour, and my expertise has been sought my media outlets.
Projects
‘Skeletal remains in the courtroom – assessing the emotional impact upon jurors of 3D-printed skeletal trauma evidence.’ Dr Hannah Fawcett (PI), Dr Maribel Cordero, Dr Maria Livanou, Dr David Errickson, and Dr Rachel Carew. Awarded £9,952.70 Small Research Grant from BA Leverhulme. May 2022 - December 2023
Teaching
I am the undergraduate programme leader with oversight of three British Psychological Society accredited undergraduate degree programmes with over 1200 students. I have over 15 years of experience teaching and supervising students at undergraduate and postgraduate level.
Unit leader - Introduction to Police Investigations
Psychology Dissertation - Project Supervisor
Supervision
Completed PhD students
- Amuda Agneswaran - ‘Experiences of Registered Intermediaries and police officers of working with adults witnesses with intellectual disabilities’. Director of studies with first supervisor Professor Rebecca Lawthom. Awarded 2018.
Current PhD Students
- Katie McMillan - ‘An Investigation into the Presentation and Evaluation of Alibi Evidence in the Courtroom’. Director of studies, with first supervisor Dr Emma Tarpey and second supervisor Professor Hannah Smithson.
- Cathy Jones - ‘Exploring feelings of well-being within an Irish Prison Environment in development.’ Director of studies, Emma Tarpey and first supervisor Dr Hannah Fawcett
I am happy to supervise PhD students in the following areas:
- Courtrooms psychology
- Deception in forensic contexts
- Alibi evidence evaluation
Research outputs
Hannah’s research interests lie within forensic psychology. Specifically she is interested in:
- Alibi witness evidence
- Eyewitness evidence
- Detecting deception
- Expert witness evidence
- Juror decision making
Hannah is active in research and works with partners at external academic organisations. Hannah has completed consultancy work for the charity InsideJustice examining potential false convictions in the UK criminal Justice System. Previous consultancy work involved working with the British Transport Police in the development of stop-and-search and counter-terrorism police training courses.
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Chapters in books
Fawcett, H.E. (2014) 'Lie Bias.' Encyclopedia of Deception. SAGE Publications,
Fawcett, H.E. (2014) 'False Testimony of Witnesses.' In Levine, T.R. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Deception. SAGE Publications,
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Media
Brooks, M., Fawcett, H. (2024) Jurors need help – gruelling criminal cases can leave them with lasting trauma.
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Journal articles
Errickson, D., Fawcett, H., Thompson, T.J.U., Campbell, A. (2019) 'The effect of different imaging techniques for the visualisation of evidence in court on jury comprehension.' International Journal of Legal Medicine, 134(4) pp. 1451-1455.
Fawcett, H., Winstanley, K. (2018) 'Children as alibi witnesses: the effect of age and confidence on mock-juror decision making.' Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 25(6) pp. 957-971.
Fawcett, H.E., Basford, A., Oldfield, J. (2017) 'Exploring first year psychology students’ experiences of their transition from pre-tertiary to university education.' Education and Health, 35(4) pp. 84-89.
Fawcett, H., Oldfield, J. (2015) 'Investigating expectations and experiences of audio and written assignment feedback in first-year undergraduate students.' Teaching in Higher Education, 21
Fawcett, H., Shrestha, L. (2015) 'Blogging about sexual assault: a thematic analysis.' Journal of Forensic Practice, 18
Fawcett, H.E. (2015) 'The Effect of Evidence Timing and Witness Motivation upon Juror Evaluations of Alibi Witnesses and Defendants.' Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 23(4) pp. 575-587.
Fawcett, H., Clark, K. (2014) 'Linkage Analysis as Evidence in Court: A Thematic Analysis of Mock Juror Deliberations.' Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 12(3) pp. 247-266.
Fawcett, H.E., Garner, I., Walkington, Z. (2009) 'On False alibis.' Forensic Update, 97pp. 31-34.