Judy Swift

Contact

• workRoom 58 2nd Floor, North Lab
  Sutton Bonington Campus
  Sutton Bonington
  Leicestershire
  LE12 5RD
  UK
• work0115 951 6178
• fax0115 951 6122
• judy.swift@nottingham.ac.uk

Expertise Summary

Cognitive determinants of obesity-related behaviour; clinical communication in nutrition and dietetics, particularly in relation to obesity; development and validation of questionnaires and psychometric scales; qualitative research methods.

Research Summary

My research predominately involves a social psychology approach to the study of food and eating behaviour.

Quantitative Research

I employ quantitative research techniques to investigate the impact of psychological constructs on food-related behaviour. My doctoral research involved the development and validation of a number of psychometric scales that measured cognitive determinants of obesity. These have subsequently been used with practising and trainee health care professionals, community and clinic samples (N.B. references for this research are available under the Publications tab). Currently I am supervising a PhD student (Kirsten Whitehead) who is developing a reliable and valid instrument to assess dietitians' communication skills during consultations and conducting a research project, along with Professor Cris Glazebrook (Behavioural Sciences) and Dr Rebecca Puhl (Yale University), which aims to identify and reduce weight stigma among trainee health care professionals.

I also have experience of working with large, existing datasets. I am currently analysing data collected over the past 10 years from over 300,000 UK school children on attitudes and current behaviour in relation to a wide range of health issues including diet, alcohol use, smoking, body image and physical activity levels. In addition, I am working with Dr Anne Kouvonen (iWHO) on the English Longitudinal Survey of Ageing to investigate the relationship between social participation, obesity and physical activity in the ageing population.

Qualitative Research

I am very interested in employing rigorous qualitative research techniques to explore people's perceptions and experiences relating to food, obesity and diet-related clinical encounters. I have recently been invited to write a series of four articles for the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics which aim to demystify qualitative research for those who feel more comfortable with conducting and evaluating quantitative research, or are inexperienced in using qualitative approaches. The first article provides a model for embarking on a qualitative research project in nutrition and dietetics (Swift & Tischler, 2010), the second and third articles overview the principal techniques of data collection (Draper & Swift, in press) and data analysis (Fade & Swift, in press), while the fourth article introduces some of the key scientific debates around quality criteria that can be applied to qualitative research (Pilnick & Swift, in press). A further example of my interest in qualitative research is my involvement in the Early Prediction and Prevention of Obesity during Childhood (EPPOC) study which involves a multidisciplinary team of researchers headed by Dr Sarah Redsell (School of Nursing). The purpose of this research is to develop and evaluate an intervention to improve health professionals' knowledge of the risk factors for childhood overweight and obesity, identification of infants 'at risk' and implementation of appropriate weight management strategies in partnership with parents. The first paper from the first phase of this project has been published (Redsell et al. 2010) and others are in the process of being written up.

Selected Publications

• SWIFT, J.A. & TISCHLER, V., 2010. Qualitative Research in Nutrition and Dietetics: Getting Started Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 23(6), 559-566
• SWIFT, J.A., GLAZEBROOK, C., ANNESS, A. and GODDARD, R., 2009. Obesity-related knowledge and beliefs in obese adults attending a specialist weight management service: implications for weight loss over one year. Patient Education and Counseling. 74(1), 70-76
• BARKER, M. & SWIFT, J.A., 2009. The application of psychological theory to nutrition behaviour change Proceedings of the Nutrition Society. 68(2), 205-209
• SWIFT, J.A., GLAZEBROOK, C. and MACDONALD, I.A., 2006. Validation of a brief, reliable scale to measure knowledge about the health risks associated with obesity International Journal of Obesity. 30(4), 661-668

• View all publications

Future Research

I am interesting in developing both qualitative and quantitative research on:

• cognitive determinants of obesity-related behaviour
• communication between health care professionals and patients with obesity and Type 2 diabetes
• decision-making around obesity surgery
• psychological consequences of obesity prevention and treatment strategies

• CLONAN, A, HOLDSWORTH, M, SWIFT, J, LEIBOVICI, D and WILSON, P, 2012. The dilemma of healthy eating and environmental sustainability: public understanding and consumption of fish Public Health Nutrition. 15(2), 277-284
• KOUVONEN A, SWIFT JA, STAFFORD M, COX T, VAHTERA J, VÄÄNÄNEN A, HEPONIEMI T, DE VOGLI R, GRIFFITHS A and KIVIMÄKI M, 2012. Social Participation And Maintaining Recommended Waist Circumference: Prospective Evidence From The English Longitudinal Study Of Aging. Journal Of Aging And Health. 24(2), 250-68
• PILNICK, A. & SWIFT, J.A., 2011. Qualitative Research in Nutrition and Dietetics: Assessing Quality Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 24(3), 209-214
• DRAPER, A. & SWIFT, J.A., 2011. Qualitative Research in Nutrition and Dietetics: Data Collection Issues Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 24(1), 3-12
• FADE, S.A. & SWIFT, J.A., 2011. Qualitative Research in Nutrition and Dietetics: Data Analysis Issues Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 24(2), 106-114
• REDSELL SA, ATKINSON PJ, NATHAN D, SIRIWARDENA AN, SWIFT JA and GLAZEBROOK C, 2011. Preventing Childhood Obesity During Infancy In Uk Primary Care: A Mixed-Methods Study Of Hcps' Knowledge, Beliefs And Practice. Bmc Family Practice. 12, 54
• REDSELL SA, ATKINSON P, NATHAN D, SIRIWARDENA AN, SWIFT J, GLAZEBROOK C, 2010. Parents' beliefs about appropriate infant size, growth and feeding behaviour: implications for the prevention of childhood obesity BMC Public Health. 10, 711
• SWIFT, J.A. & TISCHLER, V., 2010. Qualitative Research in Nutrition and Dietetics: Getting Started Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 23(6), 559-566
• SWIFT, JUDY ANNE, GLAZEBROOK, CRIS, ANNESS, ABIGAIL and GODDARD, REBECCA, 2009. Obesity-related knowledge and beliefs in obese adults attending a specialist weight-management service: implications for weight loss over 1 year. Patient Education and Counseling. 74(1), 70-6
• WHITEHEAD, K, LANGLEY-EVANS, S C, TISCHLER, V and SWIFT, J A, 2009. Communication skills for behaviour change in dietetic consultations. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 22(6), 493-500; quiz 501-3
• WHITEHEAD, K, LANGLEY-EVANS, S.C, TISCHLER, V. and SWIFT, J.A., 2009. Communication skills for behaviour change in dietetic consultations Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 22(6), 493-500
• SWIFT, J.A., GLAZEBROOK, C., ANNESS, A. and GODDARD, R., 2009. Obesity-related knowledge and beliefs in obese adults attending a specialist weight management service: implications for weight loss over one year. Patient Education and Counseling. 74(1), 70-76
• CLONAN, A, HOLDSWORTH, M and SWIFT, J. AND WILSON, P., 2009. Awareness and attitudes of consumers to sustainable food In: EurSafe Conference, University of Nottingham, 2-4 July 2009. In Millar, K., Hobson West, P., and Nerlich, B. (Ed) Ethical Futures: bioscience and food horizons. Wageningen Academic Publishers. 978-90-8686-115-6.. 205-210
• BARKER, M. & SWIFT, J.A., 2009. The application of psychological theory to nutrition behaviour change Proceedings of the Nutrition Society. 68(2), 205-209
• JOESPH, S., BEER, C., CLARKE, D., FORMAN, A., PICKERSGILL, M., SWIFT, J. and TAYLOR, J. & TISCHLER, V., 2009. Qualitative Research into Mental Health: Reflections on Epistemology Mental Health Review Journal. 14(1), 36-42
• BARKER M and SWIFT JA, 2009. The Application Of Psychological Theory To Nutrition Behaviour Change. The Proceedings Of The Nutrition Society. 68(2), 205-9
• SWIFT, J.A,, SHEARD, C. and RUTHERFORD, M., 2007. Trainee health care professionals’ knowledge of the health risks associated with obesity Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 20(6), 599-604
• GLAZEBROOK, C., MCPHERSON, A.C., MACDONALD, I.A., SWIFT, J.A., RAMSAY, C., NEWBOULD, R. and SMYTH, A., 2006. Asthma as a barrier to children's physical activity: implications for body mass index and mental health Pediatrics. 118(6), 2443-2449
• SWIFT, J.A., GLAZEBROOK, C. and MACDONALD, I.A., 2006. Validation of a brief, reliable scale to measure knowledge about the health risks associated with obesity International Journal of Obesity. 30(4), 661-668
• FURNESS,P., GARRUD,P., FAULDER,A. and SWIFT,J, 2006. Coming to terms: A grounded theory of adaptation to facial surgery in adulthood Journal of Health Psychology. 11(3), 453-466