Tracey Keogh

Tracey Keogh is an Associate Teacher in the Department of Psychology at the University of Limerick, and a member of the Centre for Social Issues Research. She is also a Student Designated Contact Person, supporting students affected by sexual harassment and violence. Her research focuses on stress, mental health, and well-being, particularly the impact of childhood trauma on development and the role of social support as a buffer against stress. She explores biobehavioral factors like addiction and adopts a clinimetric approach to stress burden analysis.

Education:

• PhD in Psychology (2018)
• BSc in Psychology (2015)
• Foundation Programme for Higher Education (2014)

Research Interests:

• Stress and health outcomes
• Childhood adversity effects
• Psychophysiological mechanisms
• Role of social participation in stress adaptation

Her articles primarily investigate cardiovascular reactivity to stress, with a focus on depression, childhood trauma, and behavioral clusters influencing health outcomes. Key findings include associations between social participation and stress tolerance, and the role of anhedonia in cardiovascular reactions.

Awards:

• Departmental Travel Bursary Award (2020)
• EIL Explore Mature Student Volunteer Award (2017)
• Faculty Travel Bursary Award (2022)
• Global Citizen Award Silver (2018)
• Irish Research Council Postgraduate Scholarship (2021)

Advising & Grants: Supervises undergraduate and postgraduate student projects. Active on committees like the Consent Framework Policy Review Group and Sexual Health and Wellbeing Group. Research activities span 2021–2025, with 10+ peer-reviewed articles.

Labs/Teams: Member of the Health and Psychophysiology Laboratory at the University of Limerick.