Staff profile

 *Dr Sophie Hodgetts is interested in hearing from potential PhD candidates who want to explore PMDD from a cognitive, neuroscientific, psychobiosocial, or applied perspective.*

Dr. Sophie Hodgetts is an Assistant Professor at Durham University, where they joined in September 2022. Previously, they were a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology at the University of Sunderland, where they also led the BSc Clinical Psychology programme. They have held research roles at Newcastle University in the Institute of Neuroscience and the Academic Psychiatry Department.

Dr. Hodgetts completed their PhD at Durham University in 2016 and have an ongoing research interest in the neuromodulatory effects of sex hormones, particularly estrogen and progesterone. Their work explores how these hormones influence functional brain organisation, cognition, and behavior, adopting a psychobiosocial approach to understanding sex/gender differences.Their research has a strong clinical focus, particularly in the context of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and other hormone-related mood disorders. They are actively developing research projects in collaboration with the International Association for Premenstrual Disorders to further understand the cognitive and neurological impacts of PMDD.

Dr. Hodgetts is also committed to advancing research on autism, particularly in thelived experiences of autistic women, autistic trans and nonbinary people, and the impact of masking. They have worked on qualitative and quantitative studies in neurodiversity, and are interested in intersectional studies of neurodiversity and sex/gender.

• Premenstrual dysphoric disorder
• Biopsychosocial study of sex/gender differences
• Hemispheric asymmetries and interhemispheric interaction
• Neuromodulatory properties of sex hormones
• Sex/gender sensitive psychiatry

Chapter in book

• Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2025). Sex/gender differences in hemispheric asymmetries. In Cerebral Asymmetries (255-265). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-443-15646-5.00014-2
• Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2022). Sex/Gender Differences in Brain Lateralisation and Connectivity. In Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences (1-29). Springer Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2022_303
• Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2022). Sex/Gender Differences in the Human Brain. In S. Della Salla (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Behavioral Neuroscience, 2nd edition (Second Edition) (646-655). (2nd ed.). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-809324-5.24103-5

Journal Article

• Hodgetts, S., & Kinghorn, A. (2025). Examining the impact of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) on life and relationship quality: An online cross-sectional survey study. PLoS ONE, 20(4), Article e0322314. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322314
• Pearson, A., & Hodgetts, S. (2024). "Comforting, Reassuring, and…Hot": A Qualitative Exploration of Engaging in Bondage, Discipline, Domination, Submission, Sadism and (Sado)masochism and Kink from the Perspective of Autistic Adults. Autism in Adulthood, 6(1), 25-35. https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2022.0103
• Hodgetts, S., Butler, J., & Patrick Williams, G. (2024). Time spent playing video games during periods of isolation has no effect on loneliness or mental health. Behaviour and Information Technology, 43(13), 3170-3191. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2023.2272201
• Pearson, A., & Hodgetts, S. (2020). Can cerebral lateralisation explain heterogeneity in language and increased non-right handedness in autism? A literature review. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 105, Article 103738. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103738
• Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2020). Antipsychotic effects of sex hormones and atypical hemispheric asymmetries. Cortex, 127, 313-332. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2020.02.016
• Weis, S., Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2019). Sex differences and menstrual cycle effects in cognitive and sensory resting state networks. Brain and Cognition, 131, 66-73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2017.09.003
• Bennett, F., Hodgetts, S., Close, A., Frye, M., Grunze, H., Keck, P., Kupka, R., McElroy, S., Nolen, W., Post, R., Schärer, L., Suppes, T., & Sharma, A. N. (2019). Predictors of psychosocial outcome of bipolar disorder: data from the Stanley Foundation Bipolar Network. International Journal of Bipolar Disorders, 7(1), https://doi.org/10.1186/s40345-019-0169-5
• Hodgetts, S., & Hausmann, M. (2018). The Neuromodulatory Effects of Sex Hormones on Functional Cerebral Asymmetries and Cognitive Control. Zeitschrift für Neuropsychologie, 29(3), 127-139. https://doi.org/10.1024/1016-264x/a000224
• Hodgetts, S., Weis, S., & Hausmann, M. (2017). Estradiol-related variations in top-down and bottom-up processes of cerebral lateralization. Neuropsychology, 31(3), 319-327. https://doi.org/10.1037/neu0000338
• Hodgetts, S., Gallagher, P., Stow, D., Ferrier, I. N., & O'Brien, J. T. (2017). The impact and measurement of social dysfunction in late‐life depression: an evaluation of current methods with a focus on wearable technology. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 32(3), https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.4632