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Christopher R. Matthews

@drcrmatthews.bsky.social
4.4K followers 3.5K following 444 posts

▪︎ Reading, writing & thinking about the moral foundation of scholarship ▪︎ Author of Doing Good Social Science: bit.ly/3EgFA2z ▪︎ More about my work: immersiveresearch.co.uk ▪︎ DM for speaking/workshop requests

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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
A new one from me. This time a short 'letter to the editor' about wanting to be able to write like a human. Open access and written with love... journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
journals.sagepub.com
I’d Like to Be a Machine Human - Christopher R. Matthews, 2026
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Great stuff, the title has me interested/intrigued please do keep me informed with progress. I hope it all goes really well. 🤙
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
How is production going? Or is it out?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Great stuff.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
A summer reading treat.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
I got in trouble at work for speaking too frankly about senior colleagues poor performance. This paper came from my reflections as to the foundations of my thoughts about vacuous 'leadership': www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Towards a ‘single-minded’ social science that matters - Humanities and Social Sciences Communications
Social science is not as it should be – I think we have lost contact with what matters. Many scholars have made similar laments and directed their attention at disciplines in an attempt to mark out a ...
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
In my experience moral leadership in contemporary academia is largely absence or symbolic. And the senior scholars that do provide it often have to sit outside of formal power structures. It seems easier to clamber the greasy academic pole if you're a malliable coward rather than a principled leader
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Absolute horror shows, the lot of them, if you ask me.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
'I know these metrics are problematic but...'
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Kuhnian 'normal science' or as Andrew Abbott would have it 'relentlessly unimaginative normal science'.
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Nathan Kalman-Lamb @nkalamb.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Here’s my take on why we need to burn down sports psychology.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
"Social science methods are not as they should be." In this paper I expand my critique of the 'epistemological fictions' that offen sit at the core of thinking & writing in disciplines such as psychology, criminology, sociology and interpretative science more broadly. Please do share 🙏
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Are there any podcasts that focus on methodology and/or qual research?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Write like the scholar you want to become
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Colleagues who run journals or know editors, I'd like to propose a symposium/debate paper to challenge the use of 'messy' as an appropriate description for scholarship. Please to tag people below or share if you know anyone that might be interested. #socialscience #sociology #qualitative #research
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Funded by @fshi.bsky.social
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
#sociology #dementia #qualitative #socialscience #dementiacare #sport #football
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
New one. The focus here is on how the families of former pro footballers are left to pick up the finance and emotional tab from heading the ball for years. Open access: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
@soc-forum.bsky.social
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
We work very hard on exactly that, thanks, I'll pass it on
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
This paper might be of interest to people working in women's health and/or sport, especially in considering the 'ontological pervasiveness' of women's bodies, also check the acknowledgements for a rant: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.... #sociology #health #qualitative #socialscience
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
I dont want to laugh at these, cus ya know, war and than. But this got me
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
Research, like most things, rarely goes as planned. That doesnt mean its messy. In fact, if your research is 'a mess,' i think youre either being descriptively lazy or admiting to doing poor science. There are much better terms than messy. More here 👇
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
Damn. I had a proof reader as well.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
Research, like most things, rarely goes as planned. That doesnt mean its messy. In fact, if your research is 'a mess,' i think youre either being descriptively lazy or admiting to doing poor science. There are much better terms than messy. More here 👇
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Ive learned more from regular visits to @oxfamgb.bsky.social in Beeston than anywhere else. I love the unknown twists my reading and career have taken following some of the ideas ive discovered there.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
I've spent the last 30mins trying to write a sentence about how hard it can be to write a good sentence.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
The Green Wave is coming but so is WW3. The Lord giveth and take away.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
What a ninny
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
Got a phd student who needs easing into philosophy of science? We wrote this chapter with them in mind. More info here: www.routledge.com/Qualitative-...
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Someone should design a course called 'Sociological discoveries that changed the world' and record short, shape lectures for YouTube. That could be a great success for the writer and a lovely resource for the discipline. @rwjdingwall.bsky.social know anyone?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
This post is gonna age like fine wine. Unfortunately in that time a needless amount of brains and lives will be damaged
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
Down with Dons - John Carey. Recommended reading for anyone in academia, esp those 'overgrown schoolboy professors' that are so desperate to be respected for their honorifics.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Ive been away teaching medics abouts doing research. Its been a great few days. My main take away is the false separation they see between their practice and their research projects. Hopefully we've corrected that somewhat, it seems we've inspired some different ways forward.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
Anyone else feel like an 'odd one out in academia'?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
Anyone else feel like an 'odd one out in academia'?
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Jan Fuhse @fuhsejan.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Steve Borgatti and I invite contributions to a special issue on "Social Network Theory" at the journal Social Networks. Send us a wide range of approaches and manuscripts, anything really, on the theoretical interpretation, systematization, integration, and reflection of empirical network research!
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
There are sports where kids get quite routine brain trauma. Obviously that is immoral. Counter arguments never hold children's health, well being and human rights in high enough regard. More here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Children’s rights, human development and play – rejecting performance-orientated youth sport
This commentary is distinctly personal for us. We think it should be likewise for all scholars, leaders and organisers involved in youth sport. This is because, to our minds, at the core of most pe...
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
The original was but not the response. Im happy to discuss these ideas of theyre of interest, cheers
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
Twitter used to be ace, I had so many positive conversations there, or at least it was the start of so many. But those days are long gone unfortunately. The moment has passed i think. What we're left with is all the negatives elements of social media and not much of the positive
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Nothing to do with the new year, but I resolve to have a footnote that is a page long at some point in my career. Obviously I'll credit Stewart Lee for leading the way.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
Formal teaching qualifications should focus on the science of pedagogy. But not to the detriment of the social theory, politics, theology, humanities and art of pedagogy. Accepting these statements requires a radical shift in how PGCHEs & university pedagogy is structured and managed.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
I think democracy, like any system of governance, fails/succeeds based on moral actions of those living with in. Its a revolution in morality and education that we need for any system to work. That requires a different understanding of social science and knowledge more broadly. What do you think?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
Why Things Matter to People - Andrew Sayer
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 27/12/2025
Embedded in these four books (in combo with a background of decent social theory) is a powerful reworking of academia and society more broadly. How will we get people to engage with such ideas when they are so quick to farm out their deliberations to unthinking artificial 'intelligence'?
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
If you're like me & like reading non-fiction on holiday, I couldn't recommend this more highly. Powerful, cogent, clear. Halpin is well read & his arguments are well reasoned. He writes with care & confidence. Very insightful & quite inspirational at time #education #pedagogy #sociology #theory
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
The link didn't work for me unfortunately 😔
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Do you see the problem of performance sport? @jackhardwicke.bsky.social and i certainly do. So we put this special issue together. Do get in touch if you have an idea. Cheers, CRM think.taylorandfrancis.com/special_issu...
think.taylorandfrancis.com
The Problem of Performance Dominating Sport, Education and Society
Calling critical scholars of sport, physical education and health, submit to a special issue challenging 'The Problem of Performance Sport'.
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Christopher R. Matthews @drcrmatthews.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
This feels like the start of what could be a fun chat, but i hate typing on my phone (and im currently by a pool on holiday). Maybe a conversation some time in the future? If youve writen anything on such topics please do send links
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