A PIONEER in her field of psychology at the University of Worcester has been shortlisted for a prestigious award.

Professor Elizabeth Peel has been nominated for the 2013 British Psychological Society Book Award after cowriting a student textbook.

The professor of psychology and social change wrote Lesbian, Gay,Bisexual,Trans and Queer Psychology: An Introduction with Dr Victoria Clarke, associate professor in sexuality studies at the University of the West of England; Dr Sonja Ellis, principal lecturer in psychology at Sheffield Hallam University, and Dr Damien Riggs. The work has now been shortlisted in the Textbook category of the BPS Book Award, which is judged jointly by the BPS Research Board, Psychology Education Board and Professional Practice Board.

Prof Peel said the quartet decided to write the book after discovering a gap in the textbook field. “I am delighted that our textbook has been shortlisted for the BPS Book Award,” she said.

“We wrote the book because we were all teaching sexualities courses and there was no textbook in the area.

“It is designed to support both courses in lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans psychology and, sexualities and gender, whilst adding in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) perspective to different areas of psychology – developmental psychology or the psychology of ageing, for example.”

She said the nomination was welcome recognition for the textbook in a competitive field.

“There is very stiff competition on the shortlist from mainstreampsychology,” she said. “Given the nature of the discipline, our critical social psychological textbook will be hard pressed to win against titles focusing on how genes influence behaviour and social neuroscience, so I am thrilled to have got this far in the competition.”

The winner will be announced later this month