Prof Zoe Walkington

Professional biography

I am Professor of Psychology at the Open University. I have worked as a full time psychology lecturer in UK Higher Education since 2003, obtained my PhD in Forensic Psychology in 2013, and began working full time at the Open University in late 2014. I became a Professor in 2022. Since August 2023 I have been one of the two Faculty Media Fellows for the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.  

I obtained an MA in Creative Writing in 2023. While a lot of my academic career has been in the psychology of police investigations I am increasingly interested in the intersection of Psychology and Creative Writing/Literature/Poetry. 

Research interests

I have a research interest in stories or narratives, and there are two main strands to this research. First I am interested in the impacts that reading can have on individuals psychologically (for example I have carried out research in how reading initiatives can help with the development of empathy). Second I am interested in how story can be used to 'create' or inform individuals identity. As an example of this I have carried out research on how police identity is created and shaped on Facebook sites. 

I am also increasingly interested in the psychology of creative writing, and in areas where creative writing and psychology intersect. 

Teaching interests

My teaching interests are in both psychology and literature, and in the area of  investigative psychology.

PhD enquiries 

I welcome enquiries from PhD students, particularly (for new students) those interested in the intersection of psychology and literature/Creative Writing.

I currently supervise two students working on Creative Writing theses with Psychological elements, and two students who are from policing/defence backgrounds on more traditionally psychological content relating to criminal behaviour. 

Impact and engagement

I have developed several free courses, available on Open Learn. The most recent I list here: 

Introducing the Psychology of our relationships with fictional villains (2024) 

Investigating a Murder with Forensic Psychology (2023) 

What happens to you when you read  (2022) 

In March 2021 I was involved as an academic advisor on the BBC Sounds Podcast "Bad People"

In 2019 I was the academic advisor to the BBC2 (Wall to Wall) production "Catching Britains Killers: the crimes that changed us." This three part documentary looked at key cases that have changed the face of the British Criminal Justice System

In 2017 I was academic advisor on the BBC2 (Minnow) production "The Detectives: Murder on the streets". This was a four part documentary following Detectives in the GMP murder investigation team.

I have produced a video for BBC ideas which can be viewed here. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/ideas/videos/how-stories-shape-our-minds/p07h9t70?playlist=made-in-partnership-with-the-open-university

External collaborations

I am currently collaborating with colleagues at Lancaster university on research into Body Worn Camera footage. I collaborated in knowledge transfer activities (in the area of investigative interviewing) with colleagues from Liverpool University (Professor Laurence Alison) for around 18 years. I have also collaborated in research publications with colleagues from Sheffield Hallam University.