Susie Scott

Prof Susie Scott is a Professor of Sociology (Sociology and Criminology) at the University of Sussex, School of Law, Politics and Sociology. She has been a faculty member since 2004 and was promoted to Professor in 2017. Her academic work is deeply rooted in micro-sociological theory, narrative identity, emotions, and mental health, with a strong focus on Symbolic Interactionism and Goffman’s dramaturgy.

Her research interests include:

• Symbolic Interactionism and Goffman’s dramaturgy
• Self-identity, social interaction, and everyday life
• Narratives, life-stories, and biographical identity
• Emotions, mental health, and psychotherapy
• The sociology of nothing, absence, and invisibility
• Shyness, embarrassment, and social anxiety
• Qualitative and narrative methodologies

Her recent publications reflect a sustained engagement with the concept of 'nothing'—silence, absence, invisibility, and unlived experiences—while continuing to explore identity transformation, particularly in extreme or total institutions. She has developed a novel research agenda titled 'the sociology of nothing,' supported by a Leverhulme Trust grant.

Susie Scott has received major recognition through her fellowships:

• Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS)
• Fellow of the British Academy (FBA)

She has secured significant external funding from the ESRC, Leverhulme Trust, Wellcome Trust, and EPSRC for projects on shyness, asexuality, mental illness, and narrative identity. She supervises students and collaborates internationally, notably with researchers in Switzerland. She convenes undergraduate modules on identity, emotions, and research projects, and has contributed to major sociology textbooks. While she maintains a private psychotherapeutic practice, this is distinct from her academic role.

She leads the international research network ANNSoR (Anglo-Nordic Network of Social Research) and continues to publish extensively in top sociology journals.