Dr Morgana Lizzio-Wilson (She/her)

Morgana Lizzio-Wilson (she/her) is a Lecturer in Social, Political, and Feminist Psychology and Co-Director of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Psychology Department.

Morgana's work is driven by a desire to understand how we can we achieve and maintain progressive social change, particularly in the context of gender equality. She is interested in understanding how members of historically advantaged groups (such as men and cisgender women) react to progressive change.

On the one hand, she explores the conditions under which people join collective efforts to agitate for change, such as joining and supporting feminist social movements, encouraging men's allyship to support gender equality, and increasing their engagement in anti-violence advocacy. On the other hand, Morgana also examines backlash against social change. Specifically, she explores the emergence of reactionary social movements which seek to reinforce inequalities (e.g., the manosphere and men's rights activism) and how historically advantaged groups come to perceive themselves as victimised by progressive change.

Through research, teaching, and leadership, Morgana strives to use her role as an academic to create inclusive, equitable, and transformational educational environments for students/future change agents; identify evidence-based strategies to increase support for and overcome resistance to social change efforts; and work with organisations, community groups, and members of the general public to campaign for change.

Specialist Areas

• Sexism
• Feminism
• Reproductive justice
• Violence against women & girls
• Allyship
• Collective action
• Social change
• Reactionary/regressive social movements
• Manosphere/men's rights activism
• Anti-feminist backlash
• Group processes
• Social identity
• Intergroup threat

Current Grants

• Sexual Violence Research Initiative Grant (2025-present, Co-Investigator)
  
  Funding to support the Global Partnership to end Online Abuse and Harassment to identify and enact research priority recommendations to address technology facilitated gender-based violence.

• British Academy Small Research Grant (2024-2025, Prinicipal Investigator)
  
  "I hate those Feminazis, too!' Interacting with likeminded (sexist) men may explain the emergence of the men's rights movement

Research Groups
Social, Environmental and Organisational