Ms Klara Jurstakova

Before joining Canterbury Christ Church University in September 2019, I graduated with an MA in Psychology from the University of St Andrews in Scotland, where I was supervised by Prof Stephen Reicher.

Following the completion of my MA, I started my PhD in social psychology at CCCU, which I am currently completing under the supervision of Dr Dennis Nigbur (CCCU) and Dr Evangelos Ntontis (The Open University). Whilst working on my PhD, my research focuses on collective action in repressive contexts, and particularly the role of leadership.

I first worked as a University Instructor at the School of Psychology and Life Sciences, and then as an Associate Lecturer.

I have collaborated on multiple research projects, including a project assessing the feasibility of re-opening large events during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK, and projects in the context of collective mourning events after HM the Queen's passing in 2022, and the ceremonial crowds during the 2023’s Coronation. 

I am an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education (AFHEA). My current teaching is mainly in the area of social psychology and research methods. I convene a final-year BSc module on crowd psychology. I supervise undergraduate and postgraduate research dissertations.

My expertise is in qualitative methods and typically, my projects will involve the studying of human behaviour in groups by using hands-on, interactive methods such as interviewing and focus groups.

The first strand of my research is directly linked to my doctoral research project which addresses how leadership influences the collective mobilization of resistance in repressive regimes. For the purposes of my work, I used a wide range of qualitative methods, including in-depth interviews with the leaders of the Velvet Revolution (1989), a process of major social change in Eastern Europe which helped the respective countries to transition towards democracy. I also conducted archival research, collaborating with various archives and historical institutes in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, where I developed strong bonds for future collaborations.

My second research strand concerns applying knowledge from crowd psychology and collective behaviour to improving public safety. I research how group dynamics influence people's behaviour, and how that impacts communication strategies about crowd safety and security.