Personal Statement
Dr Elham Amini is a senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Liverpool. Her research lies at the intersection of medical sociology, the sociology of health and illness, the sociology of emotions, gender and sexuality, and reproductive health. Her work explores how health, emotions, culture, and power shape women's embodied and biographical experiences across the life course, with a particular focus on menopause, menstruation, ageing, sexuality, and women's health in ethnically and culturally diverse communities. Drawing on qualitative, narrative, and participatory methodologies, she examines how social inequalities and cultural contexts influence health experiences and healthcare practices.
Before entering academia, Dr Amini practised as a qualified midwife in Iran for over seven years. This professional background informs her interdisciplinary approach, enabling her to bridge clinical knowledge with critical sociological perspectives on women's health, embodiment, and emotion.
Dr Amini joined the University of Liverpool in 2021, having previously held academic positions at Durham University and the University of Lincoln. She teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in sociology, including sociological theory, medical sociology, the sociology of emotions, and research methods. She has developed innovative, research-led teaching and assessment practices that promote student engagement, public participation, and employability.


• Medical Sociology
• Sociology of Emotions
• Sociology of Health and Illness
• Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Sociology
• Women’s Health and Reproductive Health
• Menopause, Ageing, and the Life Course
• Qualitative and Narrative Research Methods
• Biographical and Life History Approaches

Research Overview
My academic trajectory is grounded in my professional background as a qualified midwife, having practised for over seven years in Iran across reproductive health research centres, public clinics, and private hospital labour wards. This experience exposed me to women’s intimate narratives of sexuality, ageing, infertility, and menopause, and revealed the emotional labour, gendered expectations, and moral pressures shaping women’s health experiences.
These encounters profoundly informed my sociological interest in the sociology of health & emotions, particularly shame, fear, guilt, loss, and resilience, as they intersect with medicalisation, gender norms, and marital relations. My interdisciplinary perspective enables me to bridge clinical knowledge with critical sociological analysis, contributing nuanced insights into women’s health, embodiment, and emotional lives.