Key details
Dr Matina Shafti
Lecturer in Forensic Psychology
Matina joined the University of Greenwich in January 2024 as a lecturer in Forensic Psychology. Matina’s research has adopted qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the underlying mechanisms of self-harm and violence amongst marginalised groups. Her work has encompassed the study of various factors that may contribute to harmful behaviours and their co-occurrence, including adverse events, emotional dysregulation, psychopathy, personality, identity, and structural determinants (e.g., staff-patient interactions within forensic mental health services). During her PhD, Matina adopted a multi-method approach to advance her understanding of dual harm (when someone engages in both self-harm and aggression), and how this phenomenon may be best conceptualised in research and practice. She has presented her work at multiple national and international conferences, discussing its theoretical, empirical and practical implications. Matina has actively engaged with policymakers in the Ministry of Justice to discuss future directions and provide evidence-based recommendations for how dual harm could be better managed within forensic settings. Matina teaches various Undergraduate and master's modules, including Mental Health in Criminal and Forensic Contexts, Introduction to Applied Psychology, The Psychology of Resistance and Reintegration, and Qualitative Methods on numerous research methods modules. She also leads the Essential Research Methods module and supervises Undergraduate and Masters students.
Posts held previously
- 2019 - 2023 Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Division of Psychology & Mental Health at the University of Manchester
- 2019 - 2023 PhD Candidate in Psychology in the Division of Psychology & Mental Health at the University of Manchester
- 2018 - 2019 Research Assistant for the Institute of Health & Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow.
Responsibilities within the university
- Module leader for Essential Research Methods.
Recognition
- Member of the International Association of Forensic Mental Health Services
- Reviewer for journals e.g., Medicine, Science and the Law; Psychotherapy & Psychology: Theory, Research and Practice; Psychology, Crime and Law.
Research / Scholarly interests
Matina is interested in fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and utilising multi-method approaches to investigate how we can better support marginalised groups, including prisoners, forensic mental health service users, ethnic minorities, refugees, and asylum seekers. She aims to do this by investigating the inequalities experienced by these individuals within our current systems, as well as the factors that contribute to their harmful behaviours and mental health challenges. Matina recognises the importance of public and patient involvement during every stage of the research process and is passionate about implementing this into her work.
Key funded projects
2019, Economic and Social Research Council, Exploring the co-occurrence of self-harm and aggression from multiple layers: a multi-method investigation of dual harm.
Recent publications
Article
Shafti, Matineh , Taylor, Peter, Forrester, Andrew, Pratt, Daniel , Mars, Becky , Kapur, Nav , Webb, Roger (2023), Childhood predictors of self-harm, externalised violence and transitioning to dual harm in a cohort of adolescents and young adults. Cambridge University Press. In: , , , . Cambridge University Press, Psychological Medicine, 53 (15) . pp. 7116-7126 ISSN: 0033-2917 (Print), 1469-8978 (Online) (doi: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291723000557).
Shafti, Matineh , Taylor, Peter, Forrester, Andrew, Pratt, Daniel , Pratt, Daniel , Webb, Roger , Taylor, Peter (2023), A systematic review of the co-occurrence of self-harm and aggression: is dual harm a unique behavioural construct?. Frontiers Media. In: , , , . Frontiers Media, Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14: 1083271 . pp. 1-21 1664-0640 (Online) (doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1083271).
Shafti, Matineh , Taylor, Peter, Forrester, Andrew, Pratt, Daniel , Forrester, Andrew , Webb, Roger , Taylor, Peter (2022), The inter-connections between self-harm and aggressive behaviours: a general network analysis study of dual harm. Frontiers Media. In: , , , . Frontiers Media, Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13: 953764 . pp. 1-8 1664-0640 (Online) (doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.953764).
Handerer, Fritz , Kinderman, Peter, Shafti, Matineh, Tai, Sara (2022), A scoping review and narrative synthesis comparing the constructs of social determinants of health and social determinants of mental health: Matryoshka or two independent constructs?. Frontiers Media. In: , , , . Frontiers Media, Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13: 848556 . pp. 1-17 1664-0640 (Online) (doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.848556).
Shafti, Matineh , Taylor, Peter, Forrester, Andrew, Pratt, Daniel (2021), The co-occurrence of self-harm and aggression: a cognitive-emotional model of dual-harm. Frontiers Media. In: , , , . Frontiers Media, Frontiers in Psychology, 12: 586135 . pp. 1-17 1664-1078 (Online) (doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.586135).