This dissertation examines whether describing crowd disasters as “stampedes” affects how people assign blame. The talk argues that the term wrongly implies irrational, selfish victim behaviour, obscuring structural failures in planning and crowd management. Experiments will test whether language shifts blame from systems to victims in perceptions of crowd crushes.

This thesis examines the Soviet AIDS epidemic as a social and political crisis rather than solely a medical one. Through newspapers, diaries, and government documents, the research reveals how AIDS contributed to growing public distrust in Soviet institutions and became part of the broader crises preceding the collapse of the Soviet Union.

This research examines the gendered experiences of women in sports media in Ireland and the UK. Through interviews, it reveals how visibility brings heightened scrutiny, abuse, and self-censorship. The work highlights the emotional toll of working in male-dominated media and calls for institutional support beyond surface-level representation.