Amy Kirsten Leigh Barker

Thesis: CHISEL - Clear Health Information Supporting Empowered Lives

Forty two percent of working age adults in England struggle to understand everyday health information, creating serious barriers to informed medical decision making and patient safety. This project will feed into national efforts to improve health literacy by identifying which medical terms are difficult to understand and how this affects the reading of healthcare materials.

The PhD will address three core questions:

1.What is the processing cost of common vs. less familiar medical terms?

2.How do readers process these terms during reading?

3.Can we predict which words an individual is likely to know, enabling tailored, accessible communication?

Biography:

Amy’s research explores how people process health information, using eye tracking to investigate how language and medical terminology influence reading and comprehension. Alongside her doctoral research, Amy has experience working as a student researcher, contributing to multidisciplinary research projects and developing skills in research design, analysis and communicating findings. Her broader research interests include health communication, applied research and reducing inequalities across healthcare. She is particularly interested in how research can inform professional practice, improve the accessibility of health information and support more equitable outcomes for individuals and communities. Amy holds an MSc in Health Psychology and a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from Sheffield Hallam University.

School of Psychology

University of Nottingham

2026 Cohort

Supervisors:

Dr Walter Van Hueven

Dr Ruediger Thul

Collaborative Partner:

Alex Ball, NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board (ICB)