Melissa has been teaching in higher education for 20 years. 

Her research expertise focuses on the relationship between culture and power, which she has explored from a number of angles, including: the impact of cultural elites on policy-making; the deployment of culture by authoritarian states; the effect of charismatic leaders on the arts; the role of cultural heritage within conflict and warfare; the role of former political prisoners in cultural tourism; the use of the arts as a tool of cultural diplomacy; the role of cultural policy in social justice and democracy; the use of soft power in a new era of globalisation; abusive leadership in the arts; and the use of culture in genocide.

Melissa's work has been discussed in the most prestigious and distinguished settings, including the World Economic Forum in Davos, the United Nations, the British Council, the Organization for World Peace and the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office.

Melissa sits on the Faculty Education Leadership Team as Senior Tutor for Arts & Humanities. Her role is to provide strategic leadership as well as offer day-to-day support for academic and professional services staff who work in student support and welfare at department, faculty and college level.

Research Interests and PhD Supervision

• Cultural diplomacy and/or soft power
• Cultural and intercultural relations
• The intersection between cultural and foreign policy
• Culture in war and conflict, including cultural genocide
• Culture and social justice

Teaching

Melissa teaches at all levels, from first-year BA to final year of undergraduate, and from MA to PhD students. She convenes and teaches on both core and option (elective) modules, through a combination of workshops, seminars and lectures. Melissa received a King’s Education Award in 2016/17, and received nominations in 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2023/24. She is frequently involved in curriculum review and development to ensure that the programmes in CMCI remain relevant and up-to-date, and are grounded in the latest research.

Expertise and Public Engagement

Melissa is regularly interviewed by the media on her research, as well as approached for comment on a range of topical issues. Previous appearances include BBC Radio 4’s Thinking Allowed, the Harvard Political Review, the BBC World Service and the BBC's Arabic Channel. Her research has featured in popular and respected international publications such as National Geographic.

Selected publications

Nisbett, M., Walmsley, B. and MacDowell, E. (2024) Abusive Leadership in the Arts and the Crisis of Accountability in Rentschler, R., Reid, W. and Donelli, C. Routledge Companion on Governance, Leadership and Philanthropy in the Arts. Oxon: Routledge;

Nisbett, M. (2021) 'Can Soft Power Be Bought and Why Does it Matter?', Art & International Affairs, 5:2. https://theartsjournal.net/2021/01/29/nisbett-2/

Nisbett, M. and Rapson, J. (2020) 'The Role of Ex-Paramilitaries and Former Prisoners in Political Tourism', Political Geography, 80:5.

Nisbett, M. (2017) 'Empowering the Empowered? Slum Tourism and the Depoliticization of Poverty', Geoforum, 85:5, 37-45.

Nisbett, M. (2016) 'Who Holds the Power in Soft Power?', Arts & International Affairs, 1:1, 110-146.

Nisbett, M. and Walmsley, B. (2016) 'The Romanticization of Charismatic Leadership in the Arts', International Journal of Arts Management, Law and Society, 46:1, 2-12.

Hesmondhalgh, D., Nisbett, M., Oakley, K. and Lee, D. (2014) 'Were New Labour’s Cultural Policies Neoliberal?', International Journal of Cultural Policy, 21.1: 97-114.

Nisbett, M. (2013) 'New Perspectives on Instrumentalism: An Empirical Study of Cultural Diplomacy', international Journal of Cultural Policy, 19:5, 557-575.