Lecturer (Health and Social Care)
I work as a lecturer at the University of Sunderland in London having joined the Health and Social Care department in 2023. I teach on both the foundation and top-up programmes.
I have been teaching in the education, including further and higher education sectors since 2013 in a range of subject areas relating to autism and disabilities. I started teaching in the community in 2008. Additionally, my work in the social care sector began in 2007, alongside the other work with which I have been involved.
My research is focused on improving the lives of neurodivergent and disabled people through research and other creative engagements. In addition, I am a member of Community Against Prejudice Towards Autistic People (CAPTAP), as well as other relevant networks. I am involved in a number of projects with autistic scholars, and projects on which I lead are collaborations with autistic people (where applicable).
My research is within Applied Social Sciences, Critical Autism Studies, Sociology of Mental Health and Disabilities, Social and Positive Psychology, Organisational Culture and Improvisation.
Teaching and supervision
I teach on the following courses:
- Foundation (Fnd) in Health and Social Care
- Bachelor of Science (BSc) (hons) in Health and Social Care (Top-Up)
I teach on a number of modules, including Early Life Course Approaches in Health and Social Care, Exploring Quantitative Research Methods in Social Sciences, and Global Health. I also deliver training on inclusive pedagogy and short course provisions linked to my research and practice.
Research interests for potential research students
- Mental health and well-being
- Dementia and Carers
- Neurodivergent lives and their Life Course
- Inclusive Pedagogy
Research
Publications
Article
Keates, Nathan (2024) Developing an online improv comedy course: an action research study. International Journal of Lifelong Education. ISSN 0260-1370
Keates, Nathan, Martin, Farradeh and Waldock, Krysia Emily (2024) Autistic People’s Perspectives on Functioning Labels and Associated Reasons, and Community Connectedness. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. ISSN 0162-3257
Keates, Nathan and Waldock, Krysia Emily (2023) Autistic People, Gelotophobia, Gelotophilia and Katagelasticism: a Narrative Review. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. pp. 1-10. ISSN 2195-7185
Natri, Heini M., Abubakare, Oluwatobi, Asasumasu, Kassiane, Basargekar, Abha, Beaud, Flavien, Botha, Monique, Bottema‐Beutel, Kristen, Brea, Maria Rosa, Brown, Lydia X. Z., Burr, Daisy A., Cobbaert, Laurence, Dabbs, Chris, Denome, Donnie, Rosa, Shannon Des Roches, Doherty, Mary, Edwards, Beth, Edwards, Chris, Liszk, Síle Ekaterin, Elise, Freya, Fletcher‐Watson, Sue, Flower, Rebecca L., Fuller, Stephanie, Gassner, Dena, Onaiwu, Morénike Giwa, Good, Judith, Grant, Aimee, Haddix, Vicki L., Heraty, Síofra, Hundt, Andrew, Kapp, Steven K., Keates, Nathan, Kulshan, Trayle, Lampi, Andrew J., Latimer, Oswin, Leadbitter, Kathy, Tidd, Jennifer Litton, Manalili, Marie, Martin, Menelly, Millichamp, Anna, Morton, Hannah, Nair, Vishnu, Pavlopoulou, Georgia, Pearson, Amy, Pellicano, Liz, Porter, Hattie, Poulsen, Rebecca, Robertson, Zoe S., Rodriguez, Kayla, Roux, Anne, Russell, Mary, Ryan, Jackie, Sasson, Noah, Grier, Holly Smith, Somerville, Mark, Sorensen, Cole, Stockwell, Kayden M., Szymanski, Tauna, Thompson‐Hodgetts, Sandy, van Driel, Martine, VanUitert, Victoria, Waldock, Krysia, Walker, Nick, Watts, Courtney, Williams, Zachary, Woods, Richard, Yu, Betty, Zadow, Meghan, Zimmerman, Jordyn and Zisk, Alyssa Hillary (2023) Anti‐ableist language is fully compatible with high‐quality autism research: Response to Singer et al. (2023). Autism Research, 16 (4). pp. 673-676. ISSN 1939-3792
Keates, Nathan, Waldock, Krysia Emily and Dewar, Eleanor (2022) Tensions between autistic sociality, communication, and social skills research: A response to Bambara (2022) and Camarata (2022). Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 65 (11). pp. 4346-4350. ISSN 1558-9102
Keates, Nathan (2022) Book Review: Improvised theatre and the autism spectrum: a practical guide to teaching social connection and communication skills. Comedy Studies. pp. 1-4. ISSN 2040-6118
Keates, Nathan and Beadle-Brown, Julie (2022) The benefits of participating in improvisational comedy: a global confirmatory survey study. Comedy Studies, 13 (2). pp. 161-174. ISSN 2040-6118
Keates, Nathan, Dewar, Eleanor and Waldock, Krysia Emily (2022) “Lost in the literature.” People with intellectual disabilities who identify as trans: a narrative review. Tizard Learning Disability Review. ISSN 1359-5474
Keates, Nathan (2022) A letter to the editor regarding Bambara et al.(2021), 'Using peer supports to encourage adolescents with autism spectrum disorder to show interest in their conversation partners'. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 65 (4). pp. 1600-1603.
Woods, Richard, Waldock, Krysia Emily, Keates, Nathan and Morgan, Hayley (2019) Empathy and a personalised approach in autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. pp. 1-3.
Book Section
Keates, Nathan and Waldock, Krysia Emily (2024) Neurodivergent Learners: Inclusive and Accessible Practices in Higher Education. In: Transforming Education for Personalized Learning. IGI Global, Pennsylvania, USA, pp. 19-46. ISBN 9798369308684
Milton, Damian EM, Waldock, Krysia Emily and Keates, Nathan (2023) Autism and the 'double empathy problem'. In: Conversations on Empathy: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Imagination and Radical Othering. Routledge London, pp. 78-97. ISBN 9781003189978
Waldock, Krysia Emily and Keates, Nathan (2022) Autistic voices in Autistic research: Towards active citizenship in Autism research. In: The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Autism Studies. Routledge, pp. 288-302.
Conference or Workshop Item
Keates, Nathan, Dewar, Eleanor and Waldock, Krysia Emily (2021) Lost in the literature: Trans people with intellectual disability-A narrative review. In: JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES.
Keates, Nathan, Beadle-Brown, Julie and May, Shaun (2021) Improvisational theater or comedy and autistic people: A scoping review. In: JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES.
- Applied Social Sciences
- Critical Autism Studies
- Sociology of Mental Health and Disabilities
- Social and Positive Psychology
- Sociological Theory
- Organisational Culture and Improvisation (theatre)