About
I am a passionate advocate for evidence-based approaches to addressing health inequalities. My research focuses on understanding how place and environment impact health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable populations.
My academic journey began with studies in psychology and advanced statistical methods, which provided me with the foundation to pursue complex research questions using mixed methodologies. I am a renowned leader on designing and leading on public, patient, involvement, and co-production strategies to ensure voices of marginalised populations are central to research.
As Associate Dean for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at Southampton, I'm committed to creating more inclusive academic environments, with our community at its heart. This work complements my research interests in health disparities and access to care.
I believe that rigorous research has the power to transform lives. Whether I'm teaching research methods to students, supervising PhD students, mentoring early-career researchers, or collaborating with multidisciplinary teams on large grant-funded projects, my goal remains consistent: to generate knowledge that improves health services and outcomes for all.
Research
Research groups
Research interests
- Health inequalities
- Socio-Environmental impact on health inequalities
- Mixed methods research
- Patient and public involvement
- Co-production
Current research
Dr. Walker's current research portfolio centres on environmental health determinants and addressing place-based health inequalities through innovative methodologies and collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches.
Her research bridges environmental science with public health as shown by substantial current funding from NERC (Co-developed Environmental Solutions to Mitigate the Impact of Temperature Extremes), and EPSRC (Coastal Connections). This reflects a sophisticated understanding of how environmental factors influence health outcomes in diverse communities.
Her methodological rigor is complemented by a strong commitment to co-production and public, patient involvement, ensuring research designs genuinely address the needs of marginalised populations.
Her current research trajectory shows particular emphasis on developing scalable interventions that can meaningfully reduce health disparities within real-world healthcare and community settings.
Research projects
Completed projects
Publications
Teaching
Dr. Walker is a Senior Fellow of Higher Education Academy, and her teaching incorporates inclusive pedagogical approaches that engage diverse learning styles and perspectives, preparing students to conduct research that addresses health disparities within diverse populations.
Dr. Walker's teaching focuses primarily on research methodology and statistical analysis across both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She brings extensive expertise in quantitative methods, mixed methods research design, and analytical approaches that prepare students to conduct rigorous health services research.
Her teaching philosophy is grounded in practical application, drawing from her substantial research experience to illustrate how methodological concepts translate to real-world health research challenges. This is evident in her editing of "An Introduction to Health Services Research" Sage which is a core textbook globally for dissertations and thesis.
Biography
Dr. Dawn-Marie Walker is an Associate Professor at the University of Southampton and Associate Dean for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences. She is an accomplished mixed methods researcher with extensive experience in health services research, place-based health inequalities, i.e. Socio-environmental causes of health inequalities.
After earning her BSc in Behavioural Sciences, she completed an MSc in Research Methods and Statistics, followed by a PhD examining cognitive function in people with early-onset psychosis.
With over 50 peer-reviewed publications and successful grant funding exceeding £5 million, Dr. Walker has made significant contributions to health research. She edited a core dissertation textbook "An Introduction to Health Services Research: A Practical Guide" (SAGE, 2014).