Dr Niamh Kitching
More information
Dr. Niamh Kitching is a Lecturer in Physical Education at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland. Her research interests include the sociology of sport and PE, and gender and sport. Her published research focuses on women athletes, coaches and sports fans, and their participation and presentation in sport and sports media. More recently she has conducted research on children’s sporting identities. She has published in a number of sociology of sport journals and edited collections and regularly conducts journal peer review.
Teaching involvement
EDU219 - Wellbeing: Social, Personal, Health and Physical Education 1
EDU271 - Wellbeing: Social, Personal, Health and Physical Education 2
EDE313 - Movement Skills Development in Primary PE
EDE306 - Advanced Teaching and Learning in Physical Education
EDE400 - Physical Activity Promotion in Primary Schools
Doctoral Research Supervision
2022 - Irene Hogan (MIC) - Take a chance, give a chance and give a real chance: Experiences and perspectives of volunteer women coaches in Ladies Gaelic football
2022 - Kate O'Brien (MIC) - An Appreciative Inquiry into Coaches’ Perspectives on the Inclusion of Young People with Autism in Sport Clubs in Ireland
2021 – Marion Geary (LIT) – Motivation and athletic identity profiles of people engaging in dual career: an examination at intercounty level in the Gaelic Athletic Association in higher education in Ireland
Journal articles
Jackman, P. C., Cowley, E. S., Chéilleachair, N. N., Liston, K., Meade, M. M., Haughey, T. J., Faulkner, M., McCabe, C., Kitching, N., Egan, B., O'Connor, S., Hawkins, R. M., O'Brien, W., Murphy, N., Williamson, O., Bird, M. D., Gorman, A. J., Carlin, A., Everard, C., Martin, D., Holden, S., Kelly, E. & Lane, A. (2025). A scoping review of research about women in sport: a perspective from the island of Ireland. Performance Enhancement & Health, 13(3), 100335.
Kitching, N. (2024) Children’s views on women in sport: locating feminist narratives. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, https://doi.org/10.1177/10126902241299122
Kitching, N. (2024) Children’s accounts of parental influence on leisure choices. Leisure Studies, https://doi.org/10.1080/02614367.2024.2436178
Kitching, N. (2024). ‘What do you love about sport?’ Exploring boys’ and girls’ embodied experiences of sport. Sport, Education and Society, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2024.2375294
Kitching, N. (2024): “I’ll do it tomorrow”: supporting the post-pandemic engagement of primary pre-service teachers through blended, inquiry-based learning, Irish Educational Studies, https://doi.org/10.1080/03323315.2024.2394396
Free, M., Crosson, S., Liston, K., O’Boyle, N. and Kitching, N. (2024) Introduction to the special issue – sport, the media and Ireland: intersections of gender, class and geography, Sport in Society, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2024.2334570
Sheehan, A. and Kitching, N. (2024) ‘Is she married, single or available?’ Standing out and blending in as a woman working in sports media, Sport in Society, 27(6), 877-893 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2024.2334594
Nohilly, M., Tynan, F., Martin, R., Pope, J., Bowles, R., Dillon, M., Farrelly, G., Harmon, M., Kitching, N., La Cumber, G., Ní Chróinín, D., and O’Sullivan, L. (2023) ‘A systematic literature review to support the curriculum specification development for the area of Wellbeing’, Dublin: National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, available: https://ncca.ie/media/6229/ncca_a-systematic-literature-review-to-support-the-curriculum-specification-development-for-the-area-of-wellbeing.pdf
Bairner, A., Kitching, N., Whigham, S. and Bowes, A. (2023) "National identities, European identity and cosmopolitanism: The case of female golf fans at the 2019 Solheim Cup." Nations and Nationalism.
Kitching, N. and A. Sheehan (2023). "“I’m Obviously a Sucker for Punishment”: Responses to Audience Interactions Used by Women Working in Sports Media." International Journal of Sport Communication: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsc.2023-0173
Kitching, N., Bowes, A., and MacLaren, M. (2022) ‘The golf course doesn’t know what gender you are’: feminist perspectives in the online blog of a female professional golfer, European Journal for Sport and Society, DOI: 10.1080/16138171.2022.2129621
Kitching, N., Bowes, A., Whigham, S. & Bairner, A. (2022) ‘Didn’t know she could shout that loud’: the performance of fandom among women followers of women’s golf, Leisure Studies, DOI: 10.1080/02614367.2022.2088835
Hogan, I., Bowles, R., Kitching, N. (2022) 'Exploring the Influence of the Community-Based Sports Club Environment on the Support and Development of Volunteer Women Coaches in Ireland', Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 4, DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor….
Kitching, N., Dillon, M., O'Dwyer, A., Carroll, C. (2022) Sport Education and STEM, Physical Education Matters, 17(1).
Manoli, A., Anagnostopoulos, C., Ahonen, A., Bolton, A., Bowes, A., Brown, C., Byers, T., Cockayne, D., Cooper, I. Du, J., Geurin, A., Hayday, E., Hayton, J., Jenkin, C., Kenyon, J., Kitching, N., Kirby, S., Kitchin, P., Kohe, G., Kokolakakis, T., Leng, H., Ludvigsen, J., MacIntosh, E., Maxwell, H., May, A., Misener, K., O’Gorman, J., Parnell, D., Parry,K., Peng, Q., Plumley, D., Power, M., Ramchandani, G., Rayner, M., Scelles, N., Taylor, T., Webb, T., Winand, M. (2022) Managing sport and leisure in the era of Covid-19, Managing Sport and Leisure, 27:1-2, 1-6, DOI: 10.1080/23750472.2022.2035963
Geary, M., Kitching, N., Campbell, M. and Houghton, F. (2021) A case for change in how we refer to dual career athletes: a person first approach, Managing Sport and Leisure, DOI: 10.1080/23750472.2021.1991441
Hogan, I., Bowles, R., and Kitching, N. (2021) ‘Using the ecological-intersectional model to explore the experiences and perceptions of volunteer women ladies Gaelic football coaches in Ireland’, Sports Coaching Review, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21640….
Geary, M, Campbell, M. Kitching, N. & Houghton, F. (2021) “I’m a hurler … basically just a hurler”: a mixed methods study of the athletic identity of elite Irish Gaelic Athletic Association dual career athletes, International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/16121…
Whigham, S. Bowes, A. Kitching, N. and Bairner, A. (2021) Selling Scotland? Selling women’s golf? The 2019 Solheim Cup in the ‘Home of Golf’, Journal of Sport & Tourism, DOI: 10.1080/14775085.2021.1883096
Bowes, A., Bairner, A., Whigham, S. and Kitching, N. (2020) 'Women, War and Sport: The Battle of the 2019 Solheim Cup', Journal of War and Culture Studies, https://doi.org/10.1080/17526…, pp. 1-20
Kitching, N., Bowes, A., and Maclaren, M. (2020) '‘Write when it hurts. Then write till it doesn’t’: athlete voice and the lived realities of one female professional athlete', Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, https://doi.org/10.1080/21596…, pp. 1-17
Bowes, A. and Kitching, N. (2020) ‘Wow these girls can play’: sex integration in professional golf, Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, DOI: https://www.tandfonline.com/d…
Kitching, N. and Campbell, M. (2019) An examination of the elite development pathways for male golfers in Ireland, Managing Sport and Leisure, DOI: https://www.tandfonline.com/d…
Bowes, A. and Kitching, N. (2019) ‘Battle of the Sixes’: investigating print media representations of female professional golfers competing in a men’s tour event, International Review for the Sociology of Sport, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1012690219842544
Bowes, A. and Kitching, N. (2019) ‘Here come the girls’: Examining professional golf organisations’ online media representations of female professional golfers in a mixed-gender event, Ethical Space: The International Journal of Communication Ethics, 16(2/3), 12-20.
Liston, K. and Kitching, N. (2019) ‘Our wee country’: national identity, golf and ‘Ireland’, Sport in Society, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2019.1584186
Kitching, N., Grix, J. and Philpotts, L., (2017) Shifting hegemony in "a man's world": incremental change for female golf professional employment. Sport in Society, 20, 11, 1530-1547.
Kitching, N. (2017) 'Women in golf: a critical reflection’, in M. Toms, ed. The Routledge Handbook of Golf Science, London: Routledge, p. 404-413.
Kitching, N, MacPhail, A. and Bairner, A. (2015) Storying golf club culture: ‘Shirts, Ties, Prawns and Associates’, Journal of Qualitative Research in Sports Studies, 9, 1, 177-194.
Book chapters
Geary, M. and Kitching, N. (2025) “Evaluating the impact of athlete case studies told through creative non-fiction on coach learners in university coach education”. In: Barker-Ruchti, N. and Purdy, L. (eds.) Sports Coaching Education and Innovative Pedagogies: Approaches in Higher Education. Routledge: London, p.29-49.
Kitching, N. (2025). How does a national women’s soccer team resonate with schoolchildren? The Republic of Ireland women’s soccer team and the 2023 WWC. In: COOMBS, D. S. & YANITY, M. (eds.) Politics, Social Issues and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Routledge, pp.210-228.
Kitching, N. (2023) ‘Play like the Lady you are’: marketing women’s Gaelic football, In T. Rentner and D. Burns, Social Issues in Sports Communication: You Make the Call, Routledge: London, pp 227-237.
Kitching, N. (2022), ‘Women in golf: policy and progress’, in G. Molnár and R. Bullingham (Eds.) The Routledge Handbook of Gender Politics in Sport and Physical Activity, Routledge, London, pp. 270-280.
Kitching, N., Bowes, A. and MacLaren, M. (2021) ‘Online activism and athlete advocacy in professional women’s golf: risk or reward?’ Magrath, R. (Ed.) Athlete Activism: Contemporary Perspectives, Routledge Research in Sport, Culture and Society, Routledge, London, pp. 181-192
Bowes, A. and Kitching, N. (2021), 'The Solheim Cup: Media Representations of Golf, Gender and National Identity', Dashper, K. (Ed.) Sport, Gender and Mega-Events (Emerald Studies in Sport and Gender), Emerald Publishing Limited, Bingley, pp. 201-219. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1…
Conference presentations
Kitching, N. (2025) ‘Children’s views on women in sport’, míde research Ireland forum, TUS Athlone, Ireland (Jan 31st)
Kitching, N. (2024) ‘Children’s accounts of parental influence on their leisure choices’, paper presented at the Children’s Research Network Conference, UCD, Ireland (Dec 5th)
Kitching, N. (2022) ‘Play like the lady you are: marketing women’s Gaelic football’. Paper presented at the Media, Sport and Ireland Symposium, NUIG, Ireland (May 19th-20th).
Kitching, N., Bowes, A., Whigham, S. and Bairner, A. (2021) “Didn’t know she could shout that loud”: the performance of fandom among female followers of women’s golf, European Association for the Sociology of Sport conference, Spain, September 9th.
Kitching, N. and Bowes, A. (2019) ‘Here come the girls’: Examining professional golf organisations’ online media representations of female professional golfers in a mixed-gender event, Paper presented at the EUPOP Conference, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, 16th July.
Kitching, N. and Campbell, M. (2016) ‘Examining the Irish Male High Performance Programme: Talent development, Coaching Practices and Regional Differences’, Paper presented at the World Scientific Congress of Golf, St. Andrews, Scotland, July 18th-22nd.
Kitching, N. and Liston, K. (2015) Forty shades of green: golf, national identity and the Olympic Games. Paper presented at the European Association for the Sociology of Sport Conference, Dublin, June 10th-13th.
Kitching, N. (2014) Regional differences in talent development in Ireland: examining a national golf coaching programme. Paper presented at the Physical Activity and Youth Sport (PEPAYS) Conference, Waterford Institute of Technology, June 18th.
Kitching, N. (2013) Connecting with her, Back to basics: European Golf Course Owners Association annual conference, Lisbon, 25th October.
Kitching, N., Grix, J. and Philpotts, L. (2013) Shifting hegemony in female golf coaches’ employment in the golf industry: barriers and opportunities, Manchester Metropolitan University International Coaching Conference, Crewe, 22nd June.
Kitching, N. (2011) Researching golf club culture: me, them and us. Paper presented at the European Association for the Sociology of Sport Conference, Umea, Sweden, May 18th-22nd.
