Staff profile

I am currently undertaking a Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship exploring the connections between the climate crisis, masculinity and violence, and how to engage men and boys in building more caring relationships with the environment.

I am a Deputy Director of the Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse (CRiVA). Sandy Ruxton and I host an educational podcast called 'Now and Men: Current conversations about men's lives', and I am interested in the pedagogical role that podcasting can play. We have a dedicated website sharing all of CRiVA's research on Men, Masculinities and Social Change.

I completed my PhD at Durham in 2019, which investigated work with men and boys to prevent men’s violence against women in England, including how young men make sense of violence prevention campaigns. Subsequently I undertook an ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship on the role of the business sector in preventing violence against women, and how to engage with men about gender equality in the workplace.

Prof Nicole Westmarland, Sandy Ruxton and I have carried out research for the Government Equalities Office about the impacts of masculine gender norms in the UK today, which resulted in a report and engagement toolkit. We have also co-authored an open access book with international colleagues, 'Men's Activism to End Violence Against Women: Voices from Spain, Sweden and the UK' (Policy Press, 2021).

My research has examined the gendered impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. This has included co-authoring report for the international NGO Equimundo with Ruxton on the connections between masculinities and Covid-19, researching the consequences of the pandemic for work with men and boys in Europe, and how to build gender equality in the North East business sector in its wake. With Westmarland and colleagues we have also explored the experiences of male victim-survivors of domestic abuse during Covid-19.

I am a trustee for White Ribbon UK and steering group chair for Changing Relations CIC. Since I first started studying sociology, feminist ideas have had a profound impact on me, and these continue to provide the main inspiration for my work. I am therefore also interested in men's varied responses to feminism.

Follow me on Twitter: @the_daily_panda

• Men and masculinities
• Violence and abuse
• Primary prevention
• Gender inequality
• Environmental harm
• Masculinities and Covid-19
• (Pro-)Feminist social movements

• Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse
• Violence and Abuse

• Why do some men take a public stance against men's violence against women, and how can more men be encouraged to do so?

Authored book

• Westmarland, N., Almqvist, A.-L., Egeberg Holmgren, L., Ruxton, S., Burrell, S.R. & Delgado Valbuena, C. (2021). Men's Activism to End Violence Against Women: Voices from Spain, Sweden and the UK. Bristol: Policy Press.

Book review

• Burrell, S.R. (2023). Book Review: Male, Failed, Jailed: Masculinities and "Revolving-Door" Imprisonment in the UK. Men and Masculinities 26(1): 161-163.

Chapter in book

• Ruxton, S. & Burrell, S.R. (2022). Men, work, and care in the UK in the wake of Covid-19. In Men and Welfare. Tarrant, A., Ladlow, L. & Way, L. London: Routledge. 46-59.
• Flood, M. & Burrell, S.R. (2022). Engaging men and boys in the primary prevention of sexual violence. In Rape: Challenging Contemporary Thinking - 10 Years On. Horvath, M.A.H. & Brown, J.M. London: Routledge. 221-235.
• Burrell, S.R. (2022). Changing men and masculinities in the UK and beyond in the wake of #MeToo. In #MeToo and Beyond: Perspectives on a Global Movement. Alcalde, M.C. & Villa, P.-I. University Press of Kentucky. 67-89.
• Burrell, S.R. (2020). Male agents of change and disassociating from the problem in the prevention of violence against women. In Masculine Power and Gender Equality: Masculinities as Change Agents. Luyt, R. & Starck, K. Cham: Springer. 35-54.

Doctoral Thesis

• Burrell, S.R. (2019). Engaging men and boys in the prevention of men's violence against women in England. Department of Sociology. Durham University. PhD: 1-284.

Journal Article

• McInerney, W.W. & Burrell, S.R. (2023). Engaging men and boys in gender justice through pro-feminist podcasts: Potential benefits, challenges, and risks. Masculinities and Social Change 12(2): 160-183.
• de Maricourt, C. & Burrell, S.R. (2022). #MeToo or #MenToo? Expressions of backlash and masculinity politics in the #MeToo era. The Journal of Men's Studies 30(1): 49-69.
• Burrell, S.R. (2021). 'Cause We’re All Just Part of the System Really': Complicity and Resistance in Young Sportsmen's Responses to Violence Against Women Prevention Campaigns in England. Sociological Research Online 1-19.
• Barker, G., Burrell, S.R. & Ruxton, S. (2021). COVID-19 and Masculinities in Global Perspective: Reflections from Promundo's Research and Activism. Men and Masculinities 24(1): 168-174.
• Burrell, S.R. & Flood, M. (2019). Which feminism? Dilemmas in profeminist men's praxis to end violence against women. Global Social Welfare 6(4): 231-244.
• Burrell, S.R. (2018). The contradictory possibilities of engaging men and boys in the prevention of men's violence against women in the UK. Journal of Gender-Based Violence 2(3): 447-464.
• Burrell, S.R. & Sagmeister, M. (2017). Conference Report: Political masculinities as agents of change, Anglia Ruskin University, 9–11 December 2016. NORMA: International Journal for Masculinity Studies 12(1): 80-84.
• Burrell, S.R. (2016). The invisibility of men's practices: Problem representations in British and Finnish social policy on men's violences against women. Graduate Journal of Social Science 12(3): 69-93.

Newspaper/Magazine Article

• Burrell, S.R. (2022). How might supporting the Lionesses bring about change among men? White Ribbon UK
• Burrell, S.R. & Ruxton, S. (2022). Roe v Wade: Men benefit from abortion rights too – and should speak about them more. The Conversation
• Burrell, S.R. (2022). Conversing about men and masculinities – An example of public sociology through podcasting. Everyday Society
• Burrell, S.R., Westmarland, N. & Ruxton, S. (2021). Sarah Everard, police culture and the 'masculinised' workplaces we can all help change. The Conversation
• Burrell, S.R. (2021). Gareth Southgate’s England team have shown us more caring ways of being a man. Transforming Society
• Baker, B., Alemann, C., Burrell, S.R., Griffith, D.M., Heidari, S., Kelland, J., Lal, A. & Mukherjee, S. (2021). Men and COVID-19: Where’s the policy? BMJ Global Health
• Burrell, S.R., Westmarland, N. & Ruxton, S. (2021). How men can be allies to women right now. The Conversation
• Burrell, S.R. (2020). The climate crisis as masculine violence? Engaging men in caring for the planet. Leverhulme Trust
• Burrell, S.R. & Ruxton, S. (2020). Coronavirus reveals just how deep macho stereotypes run through society. The Conversation
• Burrell, S.R. (2019). It's time men take on the responsibility for ending male violence. White Ribbon UK
• Burrell, S.R. (2018). Changing men and masculinities in the wake of #MeToo. British Sociological Association

Report

• Burrell, S.R. (2021). A Business A_Gender: Building Gender Equality in the North East Business Sector in the Wake of Covid-19. Department of Sociology, Durham University. Changing Relations and Durham University.
• Westmarland, N., Burrell, S.R., Dhir, A., Hall, K.E., Hasan, E. & Henderson, K. (2021). 'Living a life by permission': The experiences of male victims of domestic abuse during Covid-19. Durham University.
• Burrell, S.R. & Ruxton, S. (2020). The impact of the Covid-19 crisis on work with men and boys in Europe. Durham University.
• Ruxton, S. & Burrell, S.R. (2020). Masculinities and COVID-19: Making the Connections. Promundo-US.
• Burrell, S.R., Ruxton, S. & Westmarland, N. (2020). Engaging with Men and Boys about Gender Norms: Engagement Toolkit. Government Equalities Office.
• Burrell, S.R., Ruxton, S. & Westmarland, N. (2019). Changing Gender Norms: Engaging with Men and Boys. Government Equalities Office.
• Westmarland, N. & Burrell, S.R. (2019). Perpetrators in the early stages of help-seeking: Views of service users. London, Respect.
• Burrell, S.R. & Westmarland, N. (2019). The voices of male victims: Understanding men's experiences of the Men's Advice Line. London, Respect.