Rate My Professor Rebecca Knibb

Rebecca Knibb is Professor of Health Psychology in the School of Psychology at Aston University, a Chartered Psychologist and practitioner Health Psychologist with 30 years of experience researching the psychological impact of allergies. She earned a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Hertfordshire in 1993, an MA in Criminology from the University of Keele in 1994, a PhD in Psychology from the University of Birmingham in 1999, and an MSc with Distinction in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy from the University of Derby in 2012. She also holds British Psychological Society Level A and B certificates in psychometric testing. Her career trajectory at Aston University includes Senior Lecturer from 2013 to 2017, Reader in Psychology from 2017 to 2024, and Professor since 2024. Prior roles encompass Reader in Health Psychology at the University of Derby from 2002 to 2013, Lecturer in Behavioural Science at the University of Nottingham from 2000 to 2002, Research Fellow in Epidemiology and Public Health at Nottingham from 1998 to 2000, and Research Associate in the Psychology Department at the University of Birmingham from 1995 to 1998.

Professor Knibb's research specializations center on the health-related quality of life and mental well-being of children, adolescents, and parents managing allergic conditions and asthma, with a focus on food allergy. Her research group develops interventions to address food allergy anxiety and enhances global access to psychological support. She has produced 112 research outputs, including recent key publications such as 'Development and validation of the Coping with Food Allergy Scales (CoFAS) for children and young people and parents' (2026, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice), 'The healthcare experiences and psychological support needs of adults and caregivers managing food allergy' (2026, Journal of Health Psychology), and 'A Global Survey of Mental Health Treatment Experiences among Food Allergy Patients and Caregivers' (2025, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice). She chairs the Psychology Special Interest Group of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology, serves on the UK Expert Advisory Group for Allergy, and participates in European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Task Forces on adolescent allergy impact. Her team won the Barry Kay Award in 2021 for an outstanding food allergy study and secured funding from the US National Peanut Board. Professor Knibb directs online MSc and BSc Psychology programmes, teaches long-term condition management and psychometric scale development, and supervises PhD students in health and allergy-related areas, contributing to UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 on good health and well-being.