Staff profile

Cassandra is internationally recognised for developing innovative, interdisciplinary approaches to understand people's lived experiences of physical activity. She works across two key research strands - Healthy Ageing, and Nature, Health and Wellbeing, and leads the Moving Bodies Lab, as part of the Wellcome funded Discovery Research Platform for Medical Humanities.

Cassandra has an ongoing research interest in physical activity - or moving bodies - in relation to experiences of health and wellbeing across time and space.

This work has been developed through, for example, projects exploring how sport and movement in later life can become a vehicle through which ageism is both resisted and reinforced. It has also examined how chronic conditions often diagnosed in mid and later life (e.g. Ménière’s disease, characterised by symptoms of severe vertigo, tinnitus / hearing loss), and/or disability (e.g. late onset sight loss) can recalibrate experiences of movement in everyday life. Cassandra is currently leading a programme of research to advance knowledge of what it means to move through menopause. 

Cassandra's interest in moving bodies also extends to the spaces and places that bodies move in and through. This has involved how people engage and connect with “natural environments” when seeking health and wellbeing (via a focus on weather elements, pollution, blue/green spaces), and the ways in which this is shaped and constrained by broader social forces and inequalities. This line of research is also examining how older bodies move, and could be supported to move more, in confined spaces such as prison environments.

Through her research Cassandra seeks to work in partnerships and across disciplines to ask different questions of moving bodies. The answers, while often nuanced, can enrich our response to the seemingly intractable problem for planetary health of rising levels of physical inactivity and sedentary practices. 

Cassandra's research has been supported by a range of funders, including UKRI, Wellcome, World Health Organization, NIHR, Leverhulme, The Nuffield Foundation, along with a range of Charities and partnership organisations. It has helped guide campaigns, policy and practice from the highest level (WHO) to national (AgeUK) and regional levels (County Durham Sport).

• I would be keen to hear from prospective PhD students, particularly those interested in Women's Health; Ageing; Nature, Health & Wellbeing; Sport Mobilities.
• I favour qualitative methodologies and work across different disciplines and fields including sport and exercise sciences, health geography, and medical humanities.

• 2023: Honorary Associate: The Gilbrea Centre for Studies in Aging, McMaster University
• 2019: Methods in Psychology (Editorial Board Member):
• 2016: Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health (Editorial Board Member):
• 2014: Journal of Aging Studies (Editorial Board Member):

Chapter in book

• Smith, B., & Phoenix, C. (2019). Qualitative research in physical activity and health. In S. Bird, & J. Hawley (Eds.), Research Methods in Physical Activity and Health. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315158501
• Smith, B., & Phoenix, C. (2018). Qualitative research in physical activity and health. In S. R. Bird (Ed.), Research Methods in Physical Activity and Health (109-116). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315158501-12
• Phoenix, C., & Tulle, E. (2017). Physical activity and ageing. In J. Piggin, L. Mansfield, & M. Weed (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Physical Activity Policy and Practice (264-273). Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315672779-18
• Phoenix, C., Orr, N., & Griffin, M. (2017). Bringing socio-narratology and visual methods to focus group research. In R. Barbour, & D. Morgan (Eds.), A New Era of Focus Group Research (325-342). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-58614-8_15
• Phoenix, C. (2017). Ageing bodies. In M. Silk, D. Andrews, & H. Thorpe (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Physical Cultural Studies (179-188). Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315745664-19
• Phoenix, C., & Griffin, M. (2015). Sport, physical activity and ageing. In J. Twigg, & J. Martin (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Cultural Gerontology (329-336). Taylor and Francis
• Griffin, M., & Phoenix, C. (2015). Women's lived experiences of health and ageing in physical activity. In G. Molnar, & L. Purdy (Eds.), Ethnographies in Sport and Exercise Research (77-95). Taylor and Francis
• Moran, R., Hollenbeck, J., & Phoenix, C. (2013). Structural vulnerability and narrative: Sensitising concepts for understanding the health impacts of climate change. In M. Gislason (Ed.), Ecological health: Society, Ecology and Health (109-124). Emerald. https://doi.org/10.1108/s1057-6290%282013%290000015009

Edited book

• Tulle, E., & Phoenix, C. (Eds.). (2015). Physical Activity and Sport in Later Life: Critical Approaches. Palgrave Macmillan
• Phoenix, C., & Smith, B. (Eds.). (2011). The world of physical culture in sport and exercise: Visual methods for qualitative research. Routledge

Journal Article

• Phoenix, C., & Chamberlain, K. (online). Arts-based research: Attending to methods. Methods in Psychology, Article 100179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.metip.2025.100179
• Asker, C., McGuire, L., Pollard, T., Barr, S., Green, J., Phoenix, C., & Guell, C. (in press). Manoeuvring rural mobility policy for active and sustainable travel. Social Science & Medicine, Article 118074. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118074
• Andrews, G. J., Griffin, M., & Phoenix, C. (2024). Speed as an expression and texture of space: Theory at play in a movement activity. Environment and Planning F, 3(3), 134-161. https://doi.org/10.1177/26349825241263982
• Sivaramakrishnan, H., Phoenix, C., Quested, E., Thogersen-Ntoumani, C., Gucciardi, D. F., Cheval, B., & Ntoumanis, N. (2023). “More than just a walk in the park”: A multi-stakeholder qualitative exploration of community-based walking sport programmes for middle-aged and older adults. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 15(6), 772-788. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676x.2023.2197450
• Evers, C., & Phoenix, C. (2022). Relationships between Recreation and Pollution When Striving for Wellbeing in Blue Spaces. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(7), Article 4170. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19074170
• Wiltshire, G., Clarke, N. J., Phoenix, C., & Bescoby, C. (2022). The role of sport-based social networks in the management of long-term health conditions: Insights from the World Transplant Games. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 57(2), 256-272. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690220979202
• Phoenix, C., Bell, S. L., & Hollenbeck, J. (2021). Segregation and the Sea: Toward a Critical Understanding of Race and Coastal Blue Space in Greater Miami. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 45(2), 115-137. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723520950536
• Evans, A. B., Barker-Ruchti, N., Blackwell, J., Clay, G., Dowling, F., Frydendal, S., Gliemann Hybholt, M., Hausken-Sutter, S. E., Lenneis, V., Malcolm, D., Phoenix, C., Smith, B., Svendler Nielsen, C., Wilcock, L., Williams, O., & Winther, H. (2021). Qualitative research in sports studies: challenges, possibilities and the current state of play. European Journal for Sport and Society, 18(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/16138171.2021.1899969
• Bradshaw, A., Phoenix, C., & Burke, S. M. (2020). Living in the mo(ve)ment: An ethnographic exploration of hospice patients’ experiences of participating in Tai Chi. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 40, Article 101687. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2020.101687
• Wiltshire, G., Clarke, N. J., Phoenix, C., & Bescoby, C. (2020). Organ Transplant Recipients’ Experiences of Physical Activity: Health, Self-Care, and Transliminality. Qualitative Health Research, 31(2), 385-398. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732320967915
• Phoenix, C., & Bell, S. L. (2019). Beyond “Move More”: Feeling the Rhythms of physical activity in mid and later-life. Social Science & Medicine, 231, 47-54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2018.05.006
• Bell, S., Leyshon, C., & Phoenix, C. (2019). Negotiating nature's weather worlds in the context of life with sight impairment. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 44(2), 270-283. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12285
• Phoenix, C. (2018). Why qualitative research is needed in gerontology and how we can do it better. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gby079
• Phoenix, C., & Orr, N. (2017). Analysing exceptions within qualitative data: promoting analytical diversity to advance knowledge of ageing and physical activity. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 9(3), 271-284. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676x.2017.1282539
• Bell, S., Wheeler, B., & Phoenix, C. (2017). Using Geonarratives to Explore the Diverse Temporalities of Therapeutic Landscapes: Perspectives from “Green” and “Blue” Settings. Annals of the American Association of Geographers, 107(1), 93-108. https://doi.org/10.1080/24694452.2016.1218269
• Bell, S., Tyrrell, J., & Phoenix, C. (2016). A day in the life of a Ménière's patient: understanding the lived experiences and mental health impacts of Ménière's disease. Sociology of Health & Illness, 39(5), 680-695. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9566.12527
• Griffin, M., & Phoenix, C. (2016). Becoming a runner: big, middle and small stories about physical activity participation in later life. Sport, Education and Society, 21(1), 11-27. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2015.1066770
• Bell, S., Tyrrell, J., & Phoenix, C. (2016). Ménière's disease and biographical disruption: Where family transitions collide. Social Science & Medicine, 166, 177-185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.08.025
• Bell, S., Phoenix, C., Lovell, R., & Wheeler, B. (2015). Using GPS and geo-narratives: A methodological approach for understanding and situating everyday green space encounters. Area, 47(1), 88-96. https://doi.org/10.1111/area.12152
• Caddick, N., Smith, B., & Phoenix, C. (2015). The effects of surfing and the natural environment on the well-being of combat veterans. Qualitative Health Research, 25(1), 76-86. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732314549477
• Bell, S., Phoenix, C., Lovell, R., & Wheeler, B. (2015). Seeking everyday wellbeing: The coast as a therapeutic landscape. Social Science & Medicine, 142, 56-67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.08.011
• Orr, N., & Phoenix, C. (2015). Photographing physical activity: using visual methods to ‘grasp at’ the sensual experiences of the ageing body. Qualitative Research, 15(4), 454-472. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794114543401
• Phoenix, C., & Orr, N. (2014). Pleasure: A forgotten dimension of physical activity in older age. Social Science & Medicine, 115, 94-102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.06.013
• Griffin, M., & Phoenix, C. (2014). Learning to run from narrative foreclosure: One woman's story of aging and physical activity. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 22(3), 393-404. https://doi.org/10.1123/japa.2012-0300
• Bell, S., Phoenix, C., Lovell, R., & Wheeler, B. (2014). Green space, health and wellbeing: Making space for individual agency. Health & Place, 30, 287-292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2014.10.005
• Phoenix, C., & Griffin, M. (2011). Narratives at work: What can stories of older athletes do?. Ageing & Society, 33(2), 243-266. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x11001103
• Phoenix, C., & Howe, A. (2010). Working the When, Where, and Who of social context: The case of a traumatic injury narrative. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 7(2), 140-155. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780880802571176
• Phoenix, C. (2010). Auto-photography in aging studies: Exploring issues of identity construction in mature bodybuilders. Journal of Aging Studies, 24(3), 167-180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaging.2008.12.007
• Phoenix, C. (2010). Seeing the world of physical culture: The potential of visual methods for qualitative research in sport and exercise. Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise, 2(2), 93-108. https://doi.org/10.1080/19398441.2010.488017
• Phoenix, C., & Grant, B. (2009). Expanding the agenda for research on the physically active aging body. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 17(3), 362-379. https://doi.org/10.1123/japa.17.3.362
• Randall, W., & Phoenix, C. (2009). The problem with truth in qualitative interviews: Reflections from a narrative perspective. https://doi.org/10.1080/19398440902908993
• Phoenix, C., & Sparkes, A. (2009). Being Fred: Big stories, small stories and the accomplishment of a positive ageing identity. Qualitative Research, 9(2), 219-236. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794108099322
• Phoenix, C., & Sparkes, A. (2008). Athletic bodies and aging in context: The narrative construction of experienced and anticipated selves in time. Journal of Aging Studies, 22(3), 211-221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaging.2007.04.001
• Phoenix, C., & Sparkes, A. (2007). Sporting bodies, ageing, narrative mapping and young team athletes: An analysis of possible selves. Sport, Education and Society, 12(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573320601081468
• Phoenix, C., & Sparkes, A. (2006). Keeping it in the family: Narrative maps of ageing and young athletes' perceptions of their futures. Ageing & Society, 26(4), 631-648. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0144686x06004880
• Phoenix, C., & Sparkes, A. (2006). Young athletic bodies and narrative maps of aging. Journal of Aging Studies, 20(2), 107-121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaging.2005.06.002
• Phoenix, C., Faulkner, G., & Sparkes, A. (2005). Athletic identity and self-ageing: The dilemma of exclusivity. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 6(3), 335-347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2003.11.004

Report

• Phoenix, C. (2020). Exploring older people's experiences of ageing and ageism: A pilot qualitative piece from Costa Rica, The Gambia, Pakistan and Serbia. [No known commissioning body]