Dr. Matthews concentrates her research on the history of rebellions of the enslaved, British abolitionism, the Church of the Nazarene in the Caribbean and the general Caribbean. Her recent books include History of the Church of the Nazarene, Trinidad and Tobago (2008) and Caribbean Slave Revolts and the British Abolitionist Movement (2006).
She is working on several projects including “History of the Church of the Nazarene in the Windward Islands of St Lucia, St Vincent, Grenada and Dominica" and two innovative essays, "A Rosy View of Women in Calypso" which examines the representation of women in the work of Calypso Queen of the World, Linda McArtha Lewis Sandy, and "Recent Developments in the Engendering of Caribbean History". She also teaches the history of the U.S. and of the West Indies, and has presented her work internationally including at the German Historical Institute of London on “Slave Revolts and Anti-Imperialism” and in Belize at the 2012 Conference of the Association of Caribbean Historians.
Recipient of UWI/Guardian LIfe Premium Teaching Award 2012