Research in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business

World-leading interdisciplinary, collaborative and impactful research

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World-leading research in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business at the University of Plymouth encompasses the creative arts and practice as research (Creative Writing, Theatre and Performance, Music, Fine Art and Media Arts, Digital Design and Technology), architecture and built environment, critical humanities (English, History and Art History), education and social sciences, business and management, and law and criminology.

The faculty submitted nine Units of Assessment to the 2021 Research Excellence Framework exercise and collectively produces a wealth of internationally outstanding research and impact across all its four main schools. These include: the School of Art, Design and Architecture; the Institute of Education; Plymouth Business School; and the School of Society and Culture.

The faculty is a melting pot for interdisciplinary, collaborative and impactful research, with strengths in smart cities, environmental building, coastal communities, heritage and place-making, digital and immersive technologies, arts-health research, environmental cultures, lifelong education and global displacement.

We actively collaborate with the university’s three Strategic Research Institutes in the areas of marine, sustainable earth, and health and well-being. Our researchers are creative, innovative and intellectually amphibious in their engagement in large scale multi-disciplinary projects that address global research challenges.

Professor James Daybell, Associate Dean (Research), introduces the research, impact, knowledge exchange and public engagement activities that take place within the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business .

Key themes

Cornerstone Heritage - cultural heritage research centre

Environmental Cultures - the arts, culture and humanities respond to environmental challenges

Urban Dialogues - a space to consider and create sustainable futures

Displacement - providing a voice for the displaced

Research impact

Researchers in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Business are actively engaged with stakeholders outside the University context, to contribute to meaningful and tangible benefits for people, the environment, and communities.

Discover the impact of our research through case studies and pioneering researchers

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Our research environment

Knowledge Exchange
The Bridge drives Knowledge Exchange, Impact and Placemaking initiatives for the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business.

Postgraduate research
Become part of our scholarly community that proudly includes a wide range of research approaches and disciplines

The Arts Institute – public arts programme
The University’s year-round programme of contemporary art and culture

Engaging with policy toolkit
Guidance on how government, parliament and policy making works and how researchers can engage with policy-making processes

Researcher support
Our research and creative industries team provides a range of services and support across research, creative industries, impact and knowledge exchange

Digital innovations
Our cutting edge facilities attracts and supports researchers from a wider range of disciplines

Our research activities

Rupturing Domesticity Project

The project was conceived by Dr Sana Murrani, Associate Professor in Spatial Practice and Architecture, as a way of charting the experiences of those living in Iraq at the time of the invasion and since. Supported by funding from the British Institute for Study in Iraq, she interviewed 15 Iraqi citizens from across the country, using their memories to create a visual archive of how they survived the invasion and the impact it has had on their lives in the two decades since.

Find out more about the project

The 15 spatial interpretations of traumatic events that people shared as part of the Rupturing Domesticity project (Credit Sana Murrani, University of Plymouth)

Working with our interdisciplinary research institutes

We work collaboratively with colleagues across the University, our diverse research spanning all three of our Strategic Research Institutes

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Arts - health collaborative research
Interdisciplinary research between researchers in health, care, arts, humanities and business

Creative Associates
The Sustainable Earth Institute's Creative Associates projects explore novel, innovative and creative ways of communicating research