About us

CATS centre combines the expertise from the departments of Psychology and Criminology at Middlesex University to provide high quality research, consultancy, practice training, media dissemination, and knowledge exchange in a broad range of abuse and trauma related topics across the lifespan. Our research models utilises attachment, stress, socio-ecological and lifespan models in the context of health, social care and criminal justice to inform practice and policy. We utilise a range of research methods including those online for the digital age.

We are located in the Town Hall (room TG47), Middlesex University, The Boroughs, Hendon London NW4 4BT.

What we do

Academic & applied research

We undertake both academic and applied research projects in areas of stress, health and cyberbullying. We can provide bespoke research projects and consultancy.

Training

Short training courses on assessment (e.g. child neglect/abuse; attachment style; parenting; internet offenders and risk) and methods (around assessment, self-evaluation and research tools) and consultancy for researchers and practitioners. Workshops on abuse and trauma and related topics (child safeguarding; attachment; parenting; internet abuse; interviewing child victims; risk assessment of serious offenders).

Service evaluations

We provide service evaluations in a wide range of areas, including: child safeguarding and Looked After services; police practice with vulnerable victims; educational services around abuse prevention; interagency working of professionals; youth services.

Areas of focus

Lifespan Development

Life Events, child and adult stress and mental health, attachment issues in abuse and trauma; domestic abuse of both children and partners.

Internet Child Abuse

Cyberbullying, sexting and self taken images, online stalking and internet safety, young people’s use of digital media and online behaviour in the UK and the Middle East.

Crime & victimisation

Intra-familial child sexual abuse, young people and trust in the police, child victims in the investigative process, child trafficking, community support for offenders and their families.

Our Team

Professor Antonia BifulcoCentre Director

Biography

Prof Antonia Bifulco is a psychologist who has worked in the area of clinical disorder and psycho-social risk across the lifespan since 1980. Her PhD studies at Bedford College, University of London focused on the long term impact of childhood loss of mother on depression. Her career developed in the Social Research Team headed by Prof George Brown and Tirril Harris, investigating life stress, vulnerability and depression in women. In 1990 on Prof Brown’s retirement she took over the team renamed the ‘Lifespan Research Group’ and completed an MRC programme grant. The team continued with a more applied focus after that time, working together with voluntary and statutory health and social care agencies to help improve assessment and practice.

Prof Bifulco’s research has been published widely in international peer reviewed journals. Her book co-authored with CATS member Geraldine Thomas Understanding Adult Attachment in Families (2012, Routledge) summarises 30 years of academic and applied research. In addition, Wednesday’s Child (Bifulco & Moran, 1998, Routledge) is still a primary text for students and researchers in the area of long terms effect of childhood neglect and abuse, recently translated into Italian. The Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse (CECA) interview was developed by Toni Bifulco as a standardised interview tool for collecting information on abuse in early life. This is increasingly used by practitioners in forensic, social work and psychological fields. Another publication Entrepreneurship for Everyone (2009, Mellor, Coulton, Chick, Bifulco, Mellor & Fisher, Sage) examines the issue of knowledge exchange and how university research can be used to help develop practice.

Prof Bifulco is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, is an associate fellow of the BPS and is a Chartered Psychologist, and has a visiting Professorship at Palermo University, Italy.

Recent publications

Books:

Bifulco, Antonia (2017) Identity, attachment and resilience: Exploring three generations of a Polish family. Routledge, London and New York.
Webster, Stephen and Davidson, Julia and Bifulco, Antonia (2014) Online offending behaviour and child victimisation: new findings and policy. Palgrave Macmillan.
Antonia Bifulco and Geraldine Thomas ( 2012) Understanding Adult Attachment in Family Relationships: Research, Assessment and Intervention. Routledge.

Journal articles:

Bifulco, Antonia and Frost, Nollaig (2019) Impacts of childhood maltreatment in adulthood. Maltrattamento E Abuso All’infanzia: Rivista Interdisciplinare. Child Abuse and Maltreatment: Interdisciplinary Journal (2). pp. 7-11. ISSN 1591-4267
Bifulco, Antonia and Kagan, Lisa and Spence, Ruth and Nunn, Stephen and Bailey-Rodriguez, Deborah and Hosang, Georgina M. and Taylor, Matthew and Fisher, Helen L. (2019) Characteristics of severe life events, attachment style, and depression – Using a new online approach. British Journal of Clinical Psychology , 58 (4). pp. 427-439. ISSN 0144-6657
Bifulco, Antonia , Damiani, Rachele, Jacobs, Catherine, Bunn, Amanda and Spence, Ruth (2019) Partner violence in women – associations with childhood maltreatment, attachment style and major depression. Maltrattamento E Abuso All’infanzia: Rivista Interdisciplinare | Child Abuse and Maltreatment: Interdisciplinary Journal (2) . pp. 13-28. ISSN 1591-4267
Spence, Ruth , Kagan, Lisa and Bifulco, Antonia (2019) A contextual approach to trauma experience: lessons from life events research. Psychological Medicine, 49 (9) . pp. 1409-1413. ISSN 0033-2917
Jacobs, Catherine, Boyce, Nichola, Ilan-Clarke, Yael and Bifulco, Antonia (2019) Assessing attachment style in traumatized adolescents in residential care: A case approach. Maltrattamento E Abuso All’infanzia: Rivista Interdisciplinare | Child Abuse and Maltreatment: Interdisciplinary Journal (1) . pp. 39-54. ISSN 1591-4267
Bifulco, Antonia and Frost, Nollaig (2019) Impacts of maltreatment in adolescence. Maltrattamento E Abuso All’infanzia: Rivista Interdisciplinare | Child Abuse and Maltreatment: Interdisciplinary Journal (1) . pp. 7-10. ISSN 1591-4267
Bifulco, Antonia , Jacobs, Catherine, Oskis, Andrea , Cavana, Francesca and Spence, Ruth (2019) Lifetime trauma, adversity and emotional disorder in older age women. Maltrattamento E Abuso All’infanzia: Rivista Interdisciplinare | Child Abuse and Maltreatment: Interdisciplinary Journal (2) . pp. 29-43. ISSN 1591-4267
Bifulco, Antonia , Spence, Ruth, Nunn, Stephen , Kagan, Lisa, Bailey-Rodriguez, Deborah , Hosang, Georgina M., Taylor, Matthew and Fisher, Helen L. (2019) Web-based measure of life events using computerized life events and assessment record (CLEAR): preliminary cross-sectional study of reliability, validity, and association with depression. JMIR Mental Health, 6 (1) , e10675. ISSN 2368-7959
Spence, Ruth, Jacobs, Catherine and Bifulco, Antonia (2018) Attachment style, loneliness and depression in older age women. Aging and mental health . ISSN 1360-7863
Bifulco, Antonia , Jacobs, Catherine, Ilan-Clarke, Yael, Spence, Ruth and Oskis, Andrea (2017) Adolescent attachment style in residential care: the attachment style interview and vulnerable attachment style questionnaire. British Journal of Social Work, 47 . pp. 1880-1883. ISSN 0045-3102
Spence, Ruth and Bunn, Amanda and Nunn, Stephen and Hosang, Georgina and Kagan, Lisa and Fisher, Helen L. and Taylor, Matthew and Bifulco, Antonia (2015) Measuring life events and their association with clinical disorder: a protocol for development of an online approach. JMIR Research Protocols, 4 (3). e83.
Schimmenti, Adriano and Bifulco, Antonia (2015) Linking lack of care in childhood to anxiety disorders in emerging adulthood: the role of attachment styles. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 20 (1).
Bifulco, Antonia and Schimmenti, Adriano and Jacobs, Catherine and Bunn, Amanda and Rusu, Adina C. (2014) Risk factors and psychological outcomes of bullying victimization: a community-based study. Child Indicators Research.
Bifulco, Antonia and Schimmenti, Adriano and Moran, Patricia and Jacobs, Catherine and Bunn, Amanda and Rusu, Adina Carmen (2014) Problem parental care and teenage deliberate self-harm in young community adults. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 78 (2). pp. 95-114.

For full list of research publications visit Prof Bifulco’s university profile page.

STAFF

Professor Elena MartellozzoAssociate Director and Professor in Criminology

Elena Martellozzo is an Associate Professor in Criminology and Associate Director at the Centre for Child Abuse and Trauma Studies (CATS) at Middlesex University. Elena has been working in the area of cyber violence for 15 years and is now recognised as a world leading expert in the area, focusing primarily on online harms, online safety and is involved in policy debates at the intersection of technology and human behaviour. One of Elena’s key focuses is to develop innovative research and sharing her findings in international fora. She continually attracts research funding in highly sensitive areas with government departments including the police, the Internet Watch Foundation, the NSPCC, the Children Commissioner for England, the Home Office. She has acted as an advisor on child online protection and online violence against women and girls to governments and practitioners in Italy (since 2004) and Bahrain (2016) to support the development of national child internet safety policy frameworks. Elena is a lead researcher in the area and has led a number of high impact project, nationally and internationally. As a published peer-reviewed author, and well-established national and international Criminologist, she is regularly invited as a speaker by the BBC, New York Post, Sunday Times, The Guardian, Channel 4, Radio 4, ITV, The Times Radio.

Elena is a published author and delivers regularly expert seminars in schools to pupils, parents and teachers on online safety and prevention. She also develops specialised training workshops for police officers and front line professionals working in the online safety and sexual health area.

Dr Jeffrey DeMarcoAssociate Director and Forensic Psychologist

Dr Jeffrey DeMarco is a forensic psychological senior policy and insight professional with expertise in cyberpsychology. Extensive experience leading high performing teams and delivering high quality projects tackling online harms, with an emphasis on radicalisation and child sexual abuse and exploitation. Expertise lies in understanding the intersection between psychology and technology and has required close working with police forces in assessing child sexual abuse material and developing appropriate measures/responses to its production, distribution and removal. Held several operational roles under contracts with a range of government departments, NGOs and private companies which informed strategic communications, policy and practice. Additionally, a large volume of the work has come in the form of consultancy including ‘hands on’ training and workshops with social media firms including Facebook and Twitter, as well as police forces and operational units with government departments, both nationally and internationally. He is a consultant for the national charity Victim Support with the Homicide Service – providing support for those bereaved by murder and manslaughter. He is also Senior Technical Advisor on- Protecting Children from Digital Harm for Save the Children.

Professor Lisa MarzanoProfessor in Psychology

Lisa Marzano is a Professor of Psychology and until recently Theme Director for Equity and Improvements in Health and Wellbeing at Middlesex University. For over twenty years she has worked closely with a range of stakeholders, academic collaborators and experts by lived experience to develop an interdisciplinary evidence-base to reduce suicides and self-harm in safe, effective and more compassionate ways. She has held a number of large research grants. Current areas of work include a focus on suicidal behaviour and ‘life-saving interventions’ in public places, ‘online harms’ and technological innovations in suicide prevention, and timely monitoring of suspected suicides at local and national level.

Dr Ruth SpenceSenior Research Fellow in Psychology

Ruth Spence is a senior researcher at the Centre for Child Abuse and Trauma Studies (CATS) at Middlesex University. Ruth works across various projects that focus on trauma experiences and their psychological sequela, as well as developing online assessment and intervention approaches.

Ruth has worked in partnership with charities, industry and third sector organisations using a range of online methodologies and analytic techniques to create insights from data. She has published on the determinants of mental health, including life events and the psychological effects of online content.

Paula BradburyLecturer in Criminology and Policing Practice and Researcher

Paula Bradbury is a lecturer in Criminology and Policing Practice at the University of Middlesex as well as a researcher at the Centre for Abuse & Trauma Studies. She is engaged in ongoing research projects and bid writing opportunities. She is also studying for a PhD in Criminology, exploring the appropriateness of policy and policing practice in response to adolescents sharing of nude images.

Paula is a published, peer reviewed author, specialising in the field of online harms, child sexual abuse and exploitation, stalking, sexual violence, offender pathways and adolescent digital behaviours. She has a keen interest in understanding sexual behaviours in cyberspace and how our safeguarding policies and policing practices need to evolve to meet the challenges of the Metaverse. She provides private online harms consultation to public, private, and civil service organisations, both in the UK and abroad.

Paula has also presented to the international Ministry of Justice on Online Harms and the risks of Violence Against Women and Girls in a digital age, conducted media panel discussions on the topic of risks through sexual image sharing platforms, and gives talks on sexual image sharing, legislation, policy and practice. Paula began her career working in Policing Intelligence as a Sexual Offences Analyst, and was the National Child Sexual Abuse Lead at Victim Support.

Boglárka MeggyesfalviResearcher in Child Protection and Online Safety

Boglárka Meggyesfalvi is a researcher and doctoral candidate, focusing on child protection and online harms. She is engaged in ongoing research projects that aim to influence policy and practice in the field of child online safety. Boglárka is a published author, having written peer-reviewed articles and practical guides that examine youth participation, policing social media, and critical issues such as child sexual exploitation and first-person generated intimate imagery.

With extensive experience in international project management and evaluation in the EU and Latin-America, Boglárka has successfully coordinated initiatives across multiple countries aimed at improving youth participation and child protection systems, as well as working in the areas of advocacy and legislative compliance.

She previously served as a Child Rights Representative senior officer for the Hungarian Home Office, where she engaged with high-ranking government officials to audit alternative care providers, and promote child rights initiatives. She contributed to the development of policies aimed at preventing child sexual abuse and exploitation online. Additionally, her work includes delivering training for police forces, professionals in educational settings, and organise expert seminars on safeguarding children online and offline.

Catherine Jacobs, CPsycol, AFBPsSHonorary Researcher and Evidence-Based training

Catherine Jacobs is a freelance chartered Research Psychologist and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society. She provides consultancy and training in evidence-based measures developed by CATs researchers to adoption and fostering agencies and social care services. She specialises in in-depth interview-based, risk and resilience assessments of attachment styles for adults and adolescents using the Attachment Style Interview (ASI) and of parenting using the Parenting Role Interview (PRI).

Dr Andrea OskisSenior Lecturer in Psychology

Andrea is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Middlesex University, London as well as researcher and CPD trainer in the CATS centre. Her teaching and research expertise extend across a range of areas in psychology, including developmental, biological, health, clinical and counselling psychology, but the heart of all of her work is attachment and human relationships. Andrea’s most recent interest is the role of food in social connection. Her doctoral research was in the field of psychophysiology, looking at stress hormones and attachment styles. Andrea is also an attachment-based psychoanalytic psychotherapist (UKCP registered and a member of the Bowlby Centre).

Dr Jenni WardAssociate Professor in Criminology

As an active member of CATS, Jenni’s interests are in youth offending and a commitment to criminal justice services to take into account psychological development in sentencing policy. She is a current grant holder, publishes in sociology and criminology journals and presents her work at international conferences.

Dr Laura JoynerResearcher

Laura currently works as a researcher on the project “Effectiveness of Surveillance Technologies to Prevent Suicides at High-Risk Locations”. She is broadly interested in the influence of technology on behaviour, judgements and decision making. To date, Laura’s research has focused on issues such as disinformation, online behaviour, and suicide prevention. Prior to joining Middlesex, her PhD research looked at the role of social identity and moral judgements on intentions to spread disinformation on social media.

ASSOCIATED MEMBERS

Professor Miranda HorvathAssociate Professor in Criminology

Miranda Horvath, PhD, is Professor and Director of the Institute for Social Justice and Crime, at the University of Suffolk, UK. Miranda’s research interests are focused on violence against women and girls and the professionals and agencies who work with victim-survivors and perpetrators. Miranda is the founder of the Violence Against Women and Girls Research Network.

Dr. Kari DaviesPrincipal Academic in Psychology

Dr. Kari Davies is a Principal Academic in Psychology at Bournemouth University, UK. Her research interests lie in forensic behavioural psychology, and her recent work has looked at how rape and serious sexual assault offences are investigated in the UK and how behavioural crime linkage is conducted at an international level.

Professor Julia DavidsonVisiting Professor and Associate CATS member from UEL

Dr Paul Bleakley Lecturer in Criminology

Research exploring the efficacy of a recently introduced Stalking Screening Tool across police forces in the UK.

CATS PARTNERS

herEthical.AI

A specialised AI consultancy dedicated to providing expert guidance and practical machine learning solutions for police forces and third-sector organisations. Their mission is to combat intimate partner crime and gender-based violence through cutting-edge technology.

More CATS partners, funders and collaborators

Get in touch

Centre for Abuse and Trauma Studies, Middlesex University
Town Hall (room TG47), Middlesex University, The Boroughs, Hendon London NW4 4BT