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Staff Profile

Dr Angela Mazzetti

Senior Lecturer in Management Practice

Background

Overview

I have been working in the education sector since 1996. Throughout my career I have worked with a wide range of students and I am passionate about motivating students to achieve their full learning potential. During my time in the education sector, I have led a number of funded research projects and initiatives related to widening participation; equality, diversity and inclusion; student belonging; and curriculum enhancement.  


Newcastle University Business School

I joined Newcastle University Business School in June 2019 as a Senior Lecturer in Management Practice. Currently. Since joining the school, I have undertaken a range of leadership and citizenship roles, including Degree Programme Director for the N200 BA (Hons) Business Management programme and the Deputy Subject Group Lead (People Development) for the Leadership, Work and Organisation subject group.


I teach across undergraduate and postgraduate modules in the areas of research methods, reflexive practice, responsible management and academic and professional skills.


Prior Work Experience in the Higher Education Sector

Prior to joining Newcastle University Business School, I was a Senior Lecturer in Management and Leadership at Northumbria University where I led the MBA and Senior Leader Apprenticeship suite of programmes. Before moving to the Newcastle area, I held various senior roles at Teesside University. Initially I worked in a widening participation role within the department for Lifelong Learning undertaking a range of collaborative projects aimed at enhancing access and attainment for underrepresented groups in the Teesside area. I then joined Teesside University Business School as a Senior Lecturer in Management to focus on widening access and attainment initiatives for the school.


Prior Work Experience in the Further Education Sector

Prior to joining the higher education sector, I worked in the further education sector. I led on a number of widening participation, curriculum development and quality enhancement projects which required significant multi-disciplinary partnership working and transformational leadership. 


Prior Work Experience in the Utilities Sector

Before joining the education sector, I worked in the utilities sector. I led quality and enhancement projects for utilities operatives aimed at establishing professional standards within the sector.


Recognition for Teaching and Curriculum Leadership

I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.


Reviewer Roles

I am a reviewer for the following journals:

The Journal of Higher Education: Skills and Work-Based Learning

The Journal of Organizational Ethnography

The Irish Journal of Anthropology

The Journal of Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management


Professional Memberships

I am a member of the following professional membership organisations:

The Academy of Management

The Irish Academy of Management

The European Group for Organizational Studies

The Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland

The European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction

European Association of Work and Organizational Psychology 


Qualifications

BA (Hons) Anthropology, Queen's University Belfast

PGCE, Open University, UK

TESOL, Trinity College London, UK

MSc Total Quality Management, Sheffield Hallam University, UK

PhD Anthropology, Queen's University Belfast


About Me

I am a keen gardener.

I love swimming (although I am not that great) and managed to achieve my bucket list dream of swimming in Lake Geneva / Lac Léman.

I enjoy painting and photography.

I am a registered carer.


Research

My research falls broadly into three streams:


Emotion, Stress and Coping Research: A 'Personal Ecology' Perspective

I am interested in how our 'personal ecology' influences what we consider to be stressful and the coping strategies and behaviours we adopt to deal with stressful conditions. I define personal ecology as the unique embeddedness of embodied individuals in dynamic socio-cultural and multi-sensorial environments that shift and evolve over time. This relational process comprises personal, environmental, and temporal dimensions. Personal factors include an individual’s sense of well-being and self-worth, and their access to resources in pursuit of salient aspirations and goals. Environmental factors include people’s social networks and wider social, cultural, economic, and political factors. Temporal aspects of the relationship between an individual and their environment are also explored, as interrelated personal and environmental dynamics shift and evolve over time. Through my academic research, I have explored themes such as adaptation and resilience; trauma, coping resources and reserves; recourse to intervention strategies; how stress is conceptualised and discussed; readiness and resistance to change; the long-term impact of career disruptions; and how stressful encounters are remembered and narrated. Publications related to this research can be found under 'Publications'.


A 'Scholarly Ecology' Perspective

This stream of research focuses on the concept of a 'scholarly ecology' which I define as the personal, temporal, and environmental factors that impact how individuals engage with their studies and the process through which they develop a sense of belonging to an academic community and a sense of scholarly identity. Through my research I have explored themes such as the transition from further education to higher education; the barriers to learning; belonging and identity; the role of compassionate educators; and perceptions of academic success and failure. Publications related to this research can be found under 'Publications'.


Contextual Ethics

This stream of my research focuses on the concept of 'contextual ethics' which I define as the additional ethical decisions that need to be considered when undertaking research in sensitive, extreme and transitional contexts. Through my research I have explored themes such as the emotional challenges of qualitative research; the inherent ethical challenges of ethnography; the positionality of the researcher; the use of drawings and photographs; the recording of interviews; and the limitations of engaging with home ethnography. Publications related to this research can be found under 'Publications'.


Research Funding

I have secured internal and external funding to conduct a range of scholarly research projects. These are summarised below.


Internal Research Funding

2019: Newcastle University Learning and Teaching funding to explore how educators impact UG student perceptions of final year research projects.

2022: Newcastle University Digital Innovation funding to develop a set of digital resources to support students with the final year research project.


External Research Funding

2007: Teesside University Lifelong Learning funding to develop a best practice toolkit for widening participation activities.

2008: Durham County Council funding to develop a 'new manager' programme for curriculum managers and teachers.

2008: North East Higher Skills Network funding to explore progression pathways from FE to HE.

2009: Association of Colleges funding to develop a best practice transition toolkit for FE colleges.



UG / PGT Research Supervisions

I have supervised many undergraduate and postgraduate research students on a range of people management and organisational behaviour topics. 


PGR Research Supervisions

I am currently co-supervising a PhD student exploring the impact of gendered cultural expectations on career.


I am open to new PhD students wishing to engage in qualitative research related to: (1) cultural (organisational, occupational or national) influences on stress, emotion and coping; (2) cultural influences (organisational, occupational or national) on careers; (3) academic success and failure; (4) gendered language; and (5) learning and teaching in the higher education sector.


UK Doctoral Examinations

2022: Internal Examiner PhD Newcastle University


  

Teaching

My Teaching

I teach across a range of people management, research methods, responsible management, and skills development modules at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. 


Undergraduate Modules

I deliver on the following undergraduate modules:

BUS1016: Academic and Professional Skills

BUS2040: Human Resource Management and the Future of Work

BUS2035: Human Resources to Improve Working Lives

BUS2018: Research Methods

BUS3079: The Responsible Management Practitioner


Postgraduate Modules

I deliver on the following postgraduate modules:

NBS8651: Managing in Extreme Contexts

NBS8288: The Reflexive HR Practitioner


Recognition for Teaching and Curriculum Leadership

I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy


Teaching Nominations and Awards

I have been nominated for The Education Awards (TEAs) on three occasions. The TEAs is an annual event organised by Newcastle University Students’ Union (NUSU) that gives students the opportunity to nominate members of University staff who they believe have had a significant impact on their academic experience.






Publications