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Dr Georgina Powell
(she/her)
BA (Cardiff), PhD (Cardiff)
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Teams and roles for Georgina Powell
Senior Lecturer
Overview
How can we use new technological advances to develop novel solutions for health and social care? My research explores this question across different populations (older people, people with a learning disability, autistic people, people with dizziness) and across a range of technologies (bespoke to mainstream).
Some of my current projects include: understanding digital exclusion, smart devices to improve wellbeing, agency, and social connectivity for older people and people with a learning disability, virtual/Augmented reality and video games for people with chronic dizziness (in particular, persistent postural perceptual dizziness, PPPD, or 'visual vertigo'), and multi-sensory environments for Autistic people and people with a learning disability.
I use a mixed-methods approach that combines qualitative and quantitative measures, observational studies, neuroimaging, and psychophysics. I work closely with practitioners, social care organisations and people with lived experience to co-develop my research projects.
Publication
2025
- Makin, L., Smith, E., Hedge, C., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2025. Smart speakers are an acceptable and feasible speech practice tool for children with speech difficulties. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology (10.1080/17483107.2025.2491636)
- Price, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2025. Low correlation between visual discomfort image ratings and hypersensitivity questions is improved with functional questions. Vision Research 228, article number: 108551. (10.1016/j.visres.2025.108551)
2024
- Goodwin, N., Powell, G., Loizides, F., Derry-Summer, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Sumner, P. 2024. Feasibility of gamified visual desensitisation for visually-induced dizziness. Scientific Reports 14, article number: 17864. (10.1038/s41598-024-67745-9)
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G., Price, A. and Jones, C. R. G. 2024. Patterns of equipment use for autistic children in multi-sensory environments: Time spent with sensory equipment varies by sensory profile and intellectual ability. Autism 28(3), pp. 644-655. (10.1177/13623613231180266)
- Smith, E., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2024. The lived experience of people with intellectual disability in community settings: A comparison of self-reports and staff reports. British Journal of Learning Disabilities (10.1111/bld.12629)
2023
- Smith, E., Sumner, P., Hedge, C. and Powell, G. 2023. Smart-speaker technology and intellectual disabilities: agency and wellbeing. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 18(4), pp. 432-442. (10.1080/17483107.2020.1864670)
- Goodwin, N., Sumner, P., Loizides, F., Derry-Sumner, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Powell, G. 2023. Balance-Land: a gamified rehabilitation program for people with Persistent Perceptual Postural Dizziness (PPPD) and visual vertigo. [Online]. PsyArXiv: Center for Open Science. (10.31234/osf.io/9gb73) Available at: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/9gb73
- Gamble, R., Sumner, P., Wilson-Smith, K., Derry-Summer, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Powell, G. 2023. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis to probe the lived experiences of persistent postural-perceptual dizziness. Journal of Vestibular Research 33(2), pp. 89-103. (10.3233/VES-220059)
- Aldhafiri, R., Powell, G., Smith, E. and Perera, C. 2023. Voice-enabled privacy assistant towards facilitating successful ageing in smart homes. Presented at: IEEE International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Communications, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 13-17 March 2023.
2022
- Freeman, T. C. A. and Powell, G. 2022. Perceived speed at low luminance: Lights out for the Bayesian observer?. Vision Research 201, article number: 108124. (10.1016/j.visres.2022.108124)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2022. Strategy and processing speed eclipse individual differences in control ability in conflict tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 48(10), pp. 1448-1469. (10.1037/xlm0001028)
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G. and Jones, C. R. 2022. The use of Multi-Sensory Environments with autistic children: Exploring the effect of having control of sensory changes. Autism 26(6), pp. 1379-1394. (10.1177/13623613211050176)
- Powell, G., Penacchio, O., Derry-Sumner, H., Rushton, S. K., Rajenderkumar, D. and Sumner, P. 2022. Visual stress responses to static images are associated with symptoms of Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD). Journal of Vestibular Research 32(1), pp. 69-78. (10.3233/VES-190578)
2021
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G. and Jones, C. R. G. 2021. A sequential mixed-methods approach to exploring the experiences of practitioners who have worked in multi-sensory environments with autistic children. Research in Developmental Disabilities 118, article number: 104061. (10.1016/j.ridd.2021.104061)
- Price, A., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2021. Subjective sensory sensitivity and its relationship with anxiety in people with probable migraine. Headache 61(9), pp. 1342-1350. (10.1111/head.14219)
- Smith, E., Sumner, P., Hedge, C. and Powell, G. 2021. Smart speaker devices can improve speech intelligibility in adults with intellectual disability. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders 56(3), pp. 583-593. (10.1111/1460-6984.12615)
2020
- Perry, G., Taylor, N. W., Bothwell, P. C. H., Milbourn, C. C., Powell, G. and Singh, K. D. 2020. The gamma response to colour hue in humans: evidence from MEG. PLoS ONE 15(12), article number: e0243237. (10.1371/journal.pone.0243237)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2020. Self-reported impulsivity does not predict response caution. Personality and Individual Differences 167, article number: 110257. (10.1016/j.paid.2020.110257)
- Powell, G., Derry-Sumner, H., Shelton, K., Rushton, S., Hedge, C., Rajenderkuma, D. and Sumner, P. 2020. Visually-induced dizziness is associated with sensitivity and avoidance across all senses. Journal of Neurology 267, pp. 2260-2271. (10.1007/s00415-020-09817-0)
- Powell, G., Derry-Sumner, H., Rajenderkumar, D., Rushton, S. K. and Sumner, P. 2020. Persistent postural perceptual dizziness is on a spectrum in the general population. Neurology 94(18), pp. e1929-e1938. (10.1212/WNL.0000000000009373)
2019
- Hedge, C., Vivian-Griffiths, S., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2019. Slow and steady? Strategic adjustments in response caution are moderately reliable and correlate across tasks. Consciousness and Cognition 75, article number: 102797. (10.1016/j.concog.2019.102797)
- Powell, G., Jones, C. R., Hedge, C., Charman, T., Happe, F., Simonoff, E. and Sumner, P. 2019. Face processing in autism spectrum disorder re-evaluated through diffusion models. Neuropsychology 33(4), pp. 445-461. (10.1037/neu0000524)
- Adams, R. C. et al. 2019. Claims of causality in health news: a randomised trial. BMC Medicine 17, article number: 91. (10.1186/s12916-019-1324-7)
2018
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A., Vivian-Griffiths, S. and Sumner, P. 2018. Low and variable correlation between reaction time costs and accuracy costs explained by accumulation models: Meta-analysis and simulations. Psychological Bulletin 144(11), pp. 1200-1227. (10.1037/bul0000164)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2018. The mapping between transformed reaction time costs and models of processing in aging and cognition. Psychology and Aging 33(7), pp. 1093-1104. (10.1037/pag0000298)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2018. The reliability paradox: Why robust cognitive tasks do not produce reliable individual differences. Behavior Research Methods 50(3), pp. 1166-1186. (10.3758/s13428-017-0935-1)
2016
- Powell, G., Bezeczky, Z., McMillin, R. and Freeman, T. C. A. 2016. Bayesian models of individual differences: combining autistic traits and sensory thresholds to predict motion perception. Psychological Science 27(12), pp. 1562-1572. (10.1177/0956797616665351)
- Powell, G., Wass, S. V., Erichsen, J. T. and Leekam, S. R. 2016. First evidence of the feasibility of gaze-contingent attention training for school children with autism. Autism 20(8), pp. 927-937. (10.1177/1362361315617880)
- Powell, G., Sumner, P., Harrison, J. J. and Bompas, A. 2016. Interaction between contours and eye movements in the perception of afterimages: A test of the signal ambiguity theory. Journal of Vision 16(7), article number: 16. (10.1167/16.7.16)
2015
- Powell, G., Sumner, P. and Bompas, A. 2015. The effect of eye movements and blinks on afterimage appearance and duration. Journal of Vision 15(3), pp. 1-15., article number: 20. (10.1167/15.3.20)
2013
- Powell, G. 2013. Conscious perception of illusory colour. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
- Bompas, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2013. Systematic biases in adult color perception persist despite lifelong information sufficient to calibrate them. Journal of Vision 13(1), article number: 19. (10.1167/13.1.19)
2012
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2012. Making the incredible credible: Afterimages are modulated by contextual edges more than real stimuli. Journal of Vision 12(10), article number: 17. (10.1167/12.10.17)
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2012. In pursuit of afterimage perception: Interactions with eye movements and contours. Perception 41(S), pp. 177-177. (10.1068/v120280)
2011
- Bompas, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2011. Colour perception across the visual field: No mastery of sensorimotor contingencies [Abstract]. Perception 40(S), pp. 10-10. (10.1068/v110403)
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2011. Hues being framed and the nulling of the afterimage [Abstract]. Perception 40(S), pp. 199-199. (10.1068/v110629)
Articles
- Makin, L., Smith, E., Hedge, C., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2025. Smart speakers are an acceptable and feasible speech practice tool for children with speech difficulties. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology (10.1080/17483107.2025.2491636)
- Price, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2025. Low correlation between visual discomfort image ratings and hypersensitivity questions is improved with functional questions. Vision Research 228, article number: 108551. (10.1016/j.visres.2025.108551)
- Goodwin, N., Powell, G., Loizides, F., Derry-Summer, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Sumner, P. 2024. Feasibility of gamified visual desensitisation for visually-induced dizziness. Scientific Reports 14, article number: 17864. (10.1038/s41598-024-67745-9)
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G., Price, A. and Jones, C. R. G. 2024. Patterns of equipment use for autistic children in multi-sensory environments: Time spent with sensory equipment varies by sensory profile and intellectual ability. Autism 28(3), pp. 644-655. (10.1177/13623613231180266)
- Smith, E., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2024. The lived experience of people with intellectual disability in community settings: A comparison of self-reports and staff reports. British Journal of Learning Disabilities (10.1111/bld.12629)
- Smith, E., Sumner, P., Hedge, C. and Powell, G. 2023. Smart-speaker technology and intellectual disabilities: agency and wellbeing. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology 18(4), pp. 432-442. (10.1080/17483107.2020.1864670)
- Gamble, R., Sumner, P., Wilson-Smith, K., Derry-Summer, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Powell, G. 2023. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis to probe the lived experiences of persistent postural-perceptual dizziness. Journal of Vestibular Research 33(2), pp. 89-103. (10.3233/VES-220059)
- Freeman, T. C. A. and Powell, G. 2022. Perceived speed at low luminance: Lights out for the Bayesian observer?. Vision Research 201, article number: 108124. (10.1016/j.visres.2022.108124)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2022. Strategy and processing speed eclipse individual differences in control ability in conflict tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 48(10), pp. 1448-1469. (10.1037/xlm0001028)
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G. and Jones, C. R. 2022. The use of Multi-Sensory Environments with autistic children: Exploring the effect of having control of sensory changes. Autism 26(6), pp. 1379-1394. (10.1177/13623613211050176)
- Powell, G., Penacchio, O., Derry-Sumner, H., Rushton, S. K., Rajenderkumar, D. and Sumner, P. 2022. Visual stress responses to static images are associated with symptoms of Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD). Journal of Vestibular Research 32(1), pp. 69-78. (10.3233/VES-190578)
- Unwin, K. L., Powell, G. and Jones, C. R. G. 2021. A sequential mixed-methods approach to exploring the experiences of practitioners who have worked in multi-sensory environments with autistic children. Research in Developmental Disabilities 118, article number: 104061. (10.1016/j.ridd.2021.104061)
- Price, A., Sumner, P. and Powell, G. 2021. Subjective sensory sensitivity and its relationship with anxiety in people with probable migraine. Headache 61(9), pp. 1342-1350. (10.1111/head.14219)
- Smith, E., Sumner, P., Hedge, C. and Powell, G. 2021. Smart speaker devices can improve speech intelligibility in adults with intellectual disability. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders 56(3), pp. 583-593. (10.1111/1460-6984.12615)
- Perry, G., Taylor, N. W., Bothwell, P. C. H., Milbourn, C. C., Powell, G. and Singh, K. D. 2020. The gamma response to colour hue in humans: evidence from MEG. PLoS ONE 15(12), article number: e0243237. (10.1371/journal.pone.0243237)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2020. Self-reported impulsivity does not predict response caution. Personality and Individual Differences 167, article number: 110257. (10.1016/j.paid.2020.110257)
- Powell, G., Derry-Sumner, H., Shelton, K., Rushton, S., Hedge, C., Rajenderkuma, D. and Sumner, P. 2020. Visually-induced dizziness is associated with sensitivity and avoidance across all senses. Journal of Neurology 267, pp. 2260-2271. (10.1007/s00415-020-09817-0)
- Powell, G., Derry-Sumner, H., Rajenderkumar, D., Rushton, S. K. and Sumner, P. 2020. Persistent postural perceptual dizziness is on a spectrum in the general population. Neurology 94(18), pp. e1929-e1938. (10.1212/WNL.0000000000009373)
- Hedge, C., Vivian-Griffiths, S., Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2019. Slow and steady? Strategic adjustments in response caution are moderately reliable and correlate across tasks. Consciousness and Cognition 75, article number: 102797. (10.1016/j.concog.2019.102797)
- Powell, G., Jones, C. R., Hedge, C., Charman, T., Happe, F., Simonoff, E. and Sumner, P. 2019. Face processing in autism spectrum disorder re-evaluated through diffusion models. Neuropsychology 33(4), pp. 445-461. (10.1037/neu0000524)
- Adams, R. C. et al. 2019. Claims of causality in health news: a randomised trial. BMC Medicine 17, article number: 91. (10.1186/s12916-019-1324-7)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G., Bompas, A., Vivian-Griffiths, S. and Sumner, P. 2018. Low and variable correlation between reaction time costs and accuracy costs explained by accumulation models: Meta-analysis and simulations. Psychological Bulletin 144(11), pp. 1200-1227. (10.1037/bul0000164)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2018. The mapping between transformed reaction time costs and models of processing in aging and cognition. Psychology and Aging 33(7), pp. 1093-1104. (10.1037/pag0000298)
- Hedge, C., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2018. The reliability paradox: Why robust cognitive tasks do not produce reliable individual differences. Behavior Research Methods 50(3), pp. 1166-1186. (10.3758/s13428-017-0935-1)
- Powell, G., Bezeczky, Z., McMillin, R. and Freeman, T. C. A. 2016. Bayesian models of individual differences: combining autistic traits and sensory thresholds to predict motion perception. Psychological Science 27(12), pp. 1562-1572. (10.1177/0956797616665351)
- Powell, G., Wass, S. V., Erichsen, J. T. and Leekam, S. R. 2016. First evidence of the feasibility of gaze-contingent attention training for school children with autism. Autism 20(8), pp. 927-937. (10.1177/1362361315617880)
- Powell, G., Sumner, P., Harrison, J. J. and Bompas, A. 2016. Interaction between contours and eye movements in the perception of afterimages: A test of the signal ambiguity theory. Journal of Vision 16(7), article number: 16. (10.1167/16.7.16)
- Powell, G., Sumner, P. and Bompas, A. 2015. The effect of eye movements and blinks on afterimage appearance and duration. Journal of Vision 15(3), pp. 1-15., article number: 20. (10.1167/15.3.20)
- Bompas, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2013. Systematic biases in adult color perception persist despite lifelong information sufficient to calibrate them. Journal of Vision 13(1), article number: 19. (10.1167/13.1.19)
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2012. Making the incredible credible: Afterimages are modulated by contextual edges more than real stimuli. Journal of Vision 12(10), article number: 17. (10.1167/12.10.17)
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2012. In pursuit of afterimage perception: Interactions with eye movements and contours. Perception 41(S), pp. 177-177. (10.1068/v120280)
- Bompas, A., Powell, G. and Sumner, P. 2011. Colour perception across the visual field: No mastery of sensorimotor contingencies [Abstract]. Perception 40(S), pp. 10-10. (10.1068/v110403)
- Powell, G., Bompas, A. and Sumner, P. 2011. Hues being framed and the nulling of the afterimage [Abstract]. Perception 40(S), pp. 199-199. (10.1068/v110629)
Conferences
- Aldhafiri, R., Powell, G., Smith, E. and Perera, C. 2023. Voice-enabled privacy assistant towards facilitating successful ageing in smart homes. Presented at: IEEE International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Communications, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 13-17 March 2023.
Thesis
- Powell, G. 2013. Conscious perception of illusory colour. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
Websites
- Goodwin, N., Sumner, P., Loizides, F., Derry-Sumner, H., Rajenderkumar, D. and Powell, G. 2023. Balance-Land: a gamified rehabilitation program for people with Persistent Perceptual Postural Dizziness (PPPD) and visual vertigo. [Online]. PsyArXiv: Center for Open Science. (10.31234/osf.io/9gb73) Available at: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/9gb73
Research
Smart technology in social care settings
Learn about our research here!
Can smart home technologies improve wellbeing, independence, loneliness, and safety in social care settings? In collaboration with social care organisations, I'm investigating this question for older adults and people with a learning (intellectual) disability.
Smart technology is becoming increasingly ubiquitous in daily life, and social care could capitalise on these advances to develop new models of support.
Mainstream smart technologies allow people to control their home environment via voice commands, set reminders for medication and daily routines, add social value, and provide greater accessibility than traditional devices.
Persistent Postural Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD, or 'visual vertigo')
Find out more at the Cardiff University Dizzy Lab webpage!
We are collaborating with vestibular clinicians at University Hospital Wales seeking to understand more about the causes of PPPD and other dizziness conditions, and develop better tools to measure and rehabilitate them.
We have developed a new web-based rehabilitation game for visual vertigo called Balance-Land - you can learn more about it here!
Our research so far has shown that symptoms visual vertigo are remarkably common in the general population and that the condition is associated with avoidance and sensitivity across all senses (i.e. not just limited to vision and vestibular).
We have also developed a new questionnaire, the Cardiff Hypersensitivity Scale - Visual (CHYPS), which defines and measures the four factors of visual sensitivity.
If you are a clinician and would like to access our videos showing environments that are potential triggers for PPPD, please visit the Cardiff PPPD project webpage.
Sensory environments (multi-sensory environments, sensory rooms) for autistic people, people with a learning disability and people with other conditions
Sensory environments can have a big impact on our wellbeing - is the light too bright? Is there too much background noise? But sensory stimulation can also be relaxing and soothing when we are stressed and upset.
We are exploring individual differences in sensory experiences and the importance of sensory environments in a number of different populations and settings. These include, multi-sensory environments (sensory rooms) in educational settings for autistic children and young people, sensory environments in the home for people with a learning (intellectual) disability, and individual differences in the general population.
In collaboration with Catherine Jones, I'm using a purpose-build sensory room based at the Cardiff University Centre for Human Developmental Science to understand more about how and why to use sensory rooms. We have developed an evidenced-based guide for using sensory rooms in educational settings for autistic children, which can be accessed here
Funding
Google Scholar Programme (2023-2026, $60k) Co-I
Health and Care Research Wales Social Care (2023-2028, £2.99M) Co-I
Innovation for All, Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (2022-2023, £12,213), Co-I
Innovation for All, Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (2022-2023, £9,312) PI
ESRC Collaborative PhD Studenship (2020, £60k)
Health and Care Research Wales Social Care Fellowship (2020-2024, £331,479) PI
Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund research grant (2013-2015, £49,402, named post-doc)
Teaching
I co-ordinate, lecture and run practicals on the Developmental and Clinical Psychology module for our MSc Conversion course.
I run social and development seminar in the second year BSc Course.
I'm a personal tutor on the MSc Psychology course.
I oversee the School of Psychology Early Career Academic Mentoring Scheme
I'm a placement team coordinator.
Biography
Education
2009: BA Applied Psychology (Hons) 1st class, Cardiff University.
2014: PhD Psychology, Cardiff University. Thesis: Conscious Perception of Illusory Colour. Supervised by P. Sumner and A. Bompas.
Honours and awards
Hadyn Ellis prize for best PhD dissertation (2014), School of Psychology, Cardiff University.
Professional memberships
Applied Vision Association (AVA).
Academic positions
2024 - Present - Senior Lecturer
2020 - 2024: Health and Care Research Wales Social Care Fellow / Lecturer
2014 – 2020: Research Associate at Cardiff University
July – October 2012: Press Officer for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Science Media Centre
Committees and reviewing
2009-present: Vice Chair, Innovate Trust.
2008-2009: Vice Chair, Student Volunteering Cardiff.
Supervisions
I'm interested in supervising PhD students in the areas of:
- Technological solutions in health and social care
- Sensory sensitivity/sensory experience
- Dizziness
- Autism and learning/intellectual disaiblity
Current Students
-
Jess Cray (co-supervised by Catherine Jones) - Jess's PhD is about understanding the sensory needs and experiences of people with a learning (intellectual) disability in their home environments and designing better sensory spaces.
-
Kira Nurse (co-supervised by Charith Perera) - Kira is working on a Google funded project to run workshops for neurodivergent young people in schools to understand more about their experiences of internet safety and online harms.
-
Eloise Crossman (co-supervised with Petroc Sumner) - Eloise is characterising the different factors of auditory sensitivity and developing a new scale to measure them.
-
Rebecca Dyer (co-supervised by Catherine Jones) - Becca is studying autistic children and young people's experiences of using multi-sensory environments.
-
Reem Aldhafiri (co-supervised with Charith Perera) - Reem is investigating privacy and surveillance concerns surrounding smart technology, and developing accessible ways to increase education and awareness.
Current supervision
Past projects
- Charlotte Griffin - Charlotte
- Nathan Goodwin (co-supervised with Petroc Sumner and Fernando Loizides) -
- Alice Price (co-supervised with Petroc Sumner) - Subjective sensory sensitivities as a transdiagnostic experience: characterisation, impact, and the development of the Cardiff Hypersensitivity Scale
- Ryan Gamble (co-supervised with Petroc Sumner and Simon Rushton) - Exploring factors associated with persistent perceptual postural dizziness (PPPD, 'visual vertigo'). 2022
- Katy Unwin (co-supervised with Catherine Jones) - A sequential mixed-methods approach to exploring the use of multi-sensory environments with autistic children (2019)