Our research

We understand the far-reaching impact of inequality and seek to find the right solutions. Researchers across the social sciences, arts and humanities, and science and health at Essex are revealing the influence of inequality in society and how it impacts health and wellbeing.

Our strength in data science, quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and artificial intelligence techniques can make a significant impact on improving health and wellbeing by analysing issues and delivering insights to guide decisions.

This workstream focuses on how physical and mental health and wellbeing evolve throughout the various stages of life, focusing on the factors that influence the ultimate health and wellbeing outcomes of individuals.

Understanding the role of modifiable factors and the impact of the broader determinants of health is of paramount importance to reduce health inequalities and to increase life expectancy free from ill-health.

Further, this will serve as a resource for regional, national, and international decision-makers and policy developers. This will serve as a catalyst for integrating ongoing research efforts within our University's diverse community of researchers to advance the knowledge of health and wellbeing across different life stages, fostering connections and facilitate the continuous advancement of our collective understanding of health and wellbeing, from birth to death.

This workstream focuses on leveraging University expertise for articulating the spectrum of micro-level to macro-level influences shaping health and wellbeing, as well as to advance our understanding of the ways in which diverse research disciplines can collaborate to inform effective strategies for improving both individual and population-level health and wellbeing.

This will serve as a catalyst for connecting our community of researchers, spanning a wide spectrum of fields, ranging from life sciences to human rights and policy studies. By doing so, we aim to create a dynamic platform for integrating translational and implementation research, effectively connecting the two ends of the spectrum.

Health and Medical humanities is an emerging interdisciplinary field that incorporates the arts and humanities and the social sciences, and their application to understandings of medicine, health and well-being.

The distinctive strengths of health and medical humanities at Essex are an emphasis on the politicised dimensions of power and agency in everyday life, especially the differentiation of experiences according to gender, ‘race’, sexuality and age, and belief in the importance of applied practice to change individual experiences and social awareness of health and illness.

Our work in the Medical Humanities Network clusters around three main themes: autonomy and rights; representation and experience; and embodiment and emotion. These core themes are pursued across disciplines including art history and history; drama, theatre and film studies; law and human rights; literature and creative writing; and philosophy.

Contact Nikhil.gokhani@essex.ac.uk or smcpher@essex.ac.uk to join the network.

At the University of Essex, our mental health researchers work in various departments across all areas of study, contributing to our unique multi-disciplinary approach to mental health.

Our research employs a wide range of theories, approaches and methods to tackle important questions about mental health both in the UK and around the world.

We have experts from diverse fields such as psychology, sociology, economics, epidemiology, statistics, law, sports science, creative arts, therapy, philosophy and political science driving our research forward.

Contact smcpher@essex.ac.uk or mklabunde@essex.ac.uk to join the network.

Dementia research is a key focus across a number of our departments. We are exploring risk and protective factors; early detection; health and social care considerations; the lived experience of persons living with dementia among underserved and vulnerable populations; policies surrounding dementia care; and dementia policies analysis.

Contact smruti.bulsari@essex.ac.uk to join the network.

The School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering has a strong tradition of research in artificial intelligence and communications with a growing portfolio of applications to health challenges.

The Smart Health Technologies Group

Based in the Centre for Computational Intelligence, this group applies multidisciplinary information and digital technologies to improve health

The School of Life Sciences tackles fundamental and applied aspects of global health, with a focus on understanding, detection and treatment of cancer, neurodegenerative and infectious diseases.

The Protein Structure and Mechanisms of Disease Group

This research group explores how proteins are critical for human health, the environment and biotechnology.

The School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science develops and applies cutting-edge statistical methods to answer complex epidemiological and clinical questions.

The School of Health and Social Care focuses on applied, interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary research that addresses local, national and international issues relating to health and social care practice, policy and education.

The Department of Psychology undertakes research that advances understanding of a range of health challenges including infant and child development, interpersonal relationships, public health communication, health behaviour change, cognition and brain sciences, social interactions and mental health.

Essex ESNEFT Psychological Research Unit for Behaviour, Health and Wellbeing (EEPRU)

Based in the Department of Psychology, this research unit works in partnership with ESNEFT to research psychological processes in the onset and course of health and illness and promotion of health and wellbeing, via, for example, behaviour change interventions

The School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences researches the role of exercise and active lifestyles on health and wellbeing, nature-based interventions for mental wellbeing and clinical exercise and rehabilitation.

Health, Exercise and Active Lifestyle group

This research group produces research relating to health, exercise and activity

The School of Philosophical, Historical, and Interdisciplinary Studies applies transdisciplinary approaches to facilitate critical engagement in medical humanities, addressing autonomy, disability and mental health; insight, objectivity and the management of risk; and experiences of powerlessness in contexts of chronic illness, end-of-life care, addiction and moral distress.

The Essex Law School has a global reputation for its research, including in the areas of human rights law and health law, working with global organisations such as the UN Human Rights council to support ways to strengthen the right to health across the globe.

Health Law Cluster

Based in Essex Law School, this research cluster works on topics including mental capacity and disability, sexual and reproductive health, and legal and social determinants of health.

The Department of Literature, Film and Theatre Studies combines expertise in world cinema, film theory and practice, contemporary theatre and poetry with critical and creative approaches to physical and mental health including a focus on human rights and the right to health.

The inter-departmental group based in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities explores how the arts, humanities and social sciences can be applied to understandings of medicine, health and wellbeing

The Department of Sociology and Criminology researches and develops new theoretical and methodological approaches to understand the dynamics of social life and how social structures impact on health mental wellbeing including gender, sexual violence, consent, the role of social media on health, migration and health, community interventions, sexual citizenship and health inequalities.

Centre for Intimate and Sexual Citizenship

An interdisciplinary space for cutting-edge research on contemporary intimate life

The Department of Economics researches applied economics and economic issues affecting social and private behaviour including applications to health delivery and policy.

The Department of Government studies political behaviour, comparative politics, ideology and discourse analysis, international relations and conflict resolution including applications to health systems and health policy.

The Department of Language and Linguistics researches the complexities of language from the perspectives of theory, application, and experimentation including applications to health, mental health and healthy speech development.

The Essex Business School undertake theoretical and applied research to investigate key issues and contemporary challenges within integrated health care, workplace wellbeing and mental health.

The Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies undertakes interdisciplinary research with a particular focus on psychotherapeutic practices, mental health and the impact of trauma and violence on mental wellbeing.

The Institute for Social and Economic Research is a leading centre for the production and analysis of longitudinal studies. It encompasses the ESRC Research Centre on Micro-Social Change and the successor to the British Household Panel Survey, Understanding Society both with key strands on population health, health inequalities and the social determinants of health.