Swimming in friendly waters – By Dr Rebecca Band

Dr Rebecca Band is a senior research fellow at NIHR CLAHRC Wessex

After several months of thinking ‘I think I’d like to learn how to swim’, last year, I finally made the decision to enrol in adult swimming lessons. I was motivated, I felt fit and so was confident this was something I was capable of doing (and I must admit the lessons were also convenient to get to). Psychologists might say that I had high “self-efficacy”. Self-efficacy is the belief that you will successfully be able to complete a task, activity or performance.

However, my high self-efficacy did not necessarily mean that everything went smoothly or to plan. In the hours leading up to the first lesson I started to make excuses to myself and almost (spoiler alert!) didn’t go. I suspect you’re wondering what has all this got to do with anything?

The impact of working with community organisations – by Dr Jaimie Ellis

One week on from the atrocity that took place in Christchurch, New Zealand that resulted in 50 people’s lives being taken, communities across the world have come together to show #WeAreOne. Here in Southampton the Muslim Council and Southampton’s Council of Faiths held a Peace Vigil this week to remember those lives lost. Today however, the significance of standing side by side with our Muslim friends, neighbours and colleagues really hit home.