Mary Seacole Research Centre

Mary Jane Seacole was a pioneering British-Jamaican nurse who provided comfort and care for sick and convalescent officers during the Crimean War. Her work was praised at the time, but she became even more famous a century later. She was born Mary Grant in Kingston, Jamaica, daughter of a Scottish soldier and the owner of a boarding house for officers and their families. Mary Seacole Research Centre (MSRC) was officially inaugurated in 1999 by the then Health Secretary Frank Dobson MP.

We are an interdisciplinary applied research centre focusing on Mental Health, Well-being, Culture, and Diversity, as well as Inequalities in Health and Well-being. We have national and international research collaborations with a global impact, often utilising creative and innovative methods. Our understanding of diversity includes attention to ethnic and cultural dimensions, disabilities (mental health, learning and physical, neurodiversity), LGBT+ health and social inequalities, education and wellbeing, spirituality, migration, as well as multi-agency working and delivering education to inform culturally competent practice. We also recognise the rise of digital culture within the modern world, and our group looks at the interaction of people with digital technology, and how this might be related to wellbeing, human flourishing, and mental health. Our work is co-developed with researchers, statutory, and voluntary sector agencies nationally and internationally through co-production and co-creation of knowledge, promoting the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Several members are UN Sustainable Development Goal Fellows, who advance the goals aims and targets by championing sustainable development and hub activities for staff and students. We also are part of the Midlands Doctoral Training Partnership with the ESRC and AHRC. Our centre has been active in applied mental health research with respect to ethnic disparities in the UK for the past two decades.

Areas of expertise

Our vision:

  • Develop an exciting interdisciplinary research community that transforms mental health and wellbeing nationally and internationally.
  • Place research excellence, creativity and innovation at the heart of our activities
  • Focus on research that is collaborative and understands the diverse needs of our stakeholders
  • Be a recognised leader in research for transformative services in diversity.
  • Co-produce and co-create knowledge with users, communities and stakeholders
  • Our research is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals 1,3,4, 5, 10, 13 and 16

Our research areas and expertise:

  • Mental health and resilience
  • Migration, culture and mental health
  • Diversity, ethnicity and mental health inequalities
  • Global mental health
  • Arts and mental health
  • Inclusive and participatory research methodology
  • Health humanities
  • Public mental health
  • Intellectual disability and mental health
  • Disability and chronic illness
  • Psychosocial support models
  • Digital wellbeing
  • LGBT+ mental health and wellbeing
  • Positive Psychology
  • Substance use and addiction
  • Ethnic inequalities, health and wellbeing
  • Digital wellbeing
  • Social media and wellbeing
  • Mental wellbeing and student success
  • Mental Health in the curriculum
  • Process evaluations
  • Forgiveness and mental health
  • Neurodevelopmental disorders
  • Wellbeing studies in African groups
  • Spiritual care and wellbeing

Collaborative work with agencies and community groups is a priority, to ensure active dissemination and implementation of research findings in practice. Researchers at the MSRC are active in international networks to promote equality.

 

Research projects

We work with researchers, statutory and voluntary sector agencies nationally and internationally through co-production and co-creation of knowledge for promoting UN Sustainable Development Goals.

  • Mental Health Literacy in rural and urban communities in Kerala India: An interdisciplinary approach using applied theatre methodology (MeHeLP India). This international interdisciplinary partnership research project that examines the applicability of evidence-based interventions of Mental Health Literacy (MHL) for urban and rural communities through a multi-centre study using participatory theatre and media. This is a three-year project based in Kerala, India funded by Economic and Social research Council (ESRC), Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) (£686,862)
  • An exploration of Mental health and resilience migrant workers in India using community theatre methodology. This international research project examines how internal migrants living in slum dwelling communities construct mental health resilience in the modest of adversities. This International research project is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Medical Research Council (MRC) and Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) (£198,000)
  • Loneliness and social isolation in migrant communities: A systematic Review (Funded by NIHR Public Health Research with Professor Sarah Salway University of Sheffield) 2017-2019
  • Access to mental health services by people from minority ethnic communities in East Midlands: An exploratory study (£20000) Raghu Raghavan – East Midlands Mental Health Clinical Network April 2019 to January 2020
  • ROSHINI 2 – Multi Centre RCT of a group of psychological Intervention for postnatal depression in British mothers of South Asian origin. Leicester Site Collaborator (Raghavan) (Prof Brugha, Leicester University)
  • Mental health and Wellbeing of Older people: A Pilot study Funded by EWA, Leicester) (October 2019 to March 2019)

Recently completed projects

  • Toolkit for improving BAME research participation (City CCG) PI 2016-18 (Prof. Azar Farooqi, Raghu Raghavan, Karaen Jutlla, and partners)
  • Detection of dementia in Black Asian and Minority Ethnic communities in Primary Care (NIHR RFPB Feasibility study) Prof. Andy Wilson, Raghu Raghavan, Hari Subramanian, Mark Johnson and partners)

Future projects

Positive Youth Development: Sustainable Wellbeing in Belarussian Youth (SWiBY)

AMS GCRF Networking Grant (£25,000)

The project is based on the interdisciplinary principles of co-creation and co-production between Belarusian scholars in public health, local government, and the Belarusian Republican Youth Union (BRYU), and British and Norwegian scholars in mental health, Positive Youth Development (PYD), and public health policy. The network will develop culturally-relevant methodology to address pressing local issues in youth development: substance abuse, suicide rates, mental health stigma, and lack of public engagement.

Publications

Appiah, R., Wissing, M. P., Wilson Fadiji, A., & Schutte, L. (2022). Factorial validity of the Twi version of the mental health continuum-short form and prevalence of mental health in a rural Ghanaian sample. In Embracing well-being in diverse African contexts: Research perspectives (pp. 73-98). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Appiah, R., Wilson Fadiji, A., Wissing, M. P., & Schutte, L. (2022). The inspired life program: development of a multicomponent positive psychology intervention for rural adults in Ghana. Journal of Community Psychology, 50(1), 302-328.

Allman, Z. and Davies, R. (2025) Third space professionals and academic collaboration to embed mental wellbeing in the curriculum. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. 33. doi:

Allman Z. (2024) Ensuring Student Mental Wellbeing whilst introducing Block Mode Intensive Learning and Teaching. Journal of Block and Intensive Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 3-21.

Atkin, K.M., Berghs, M., & Chattoo, S. (2023). Representing Disabling Experiences: Rethinking Quality of Life when Evaluating Public Health Interventions. Politics & Policy, 1-57.

Berghs, M., Dyson, S., Gabba, A., Nyandemo, S., Roberts, G., Deen, G., & Thomas, I. (2023). “I want to become someone!” gender, reproduction and the moral career of motherhood for women with sickle cell disorders. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 25(5), 633-647.

Berghs, M., Horne, F., Yates, S., Graham, S., Kemp, R., Webster, A. & Howson, C. (2022). Black Sickle Cell Patients’ Lives Matter: Healthcare, long- term shielding and psychological distress during a racialized pandemic in England – a mixed-methods study. BMJ Open, 12(9), e057141.

Berghs, M., & Dyson, S. M. (2022). Intersectionality and employment in the United Kingdom: Where are all the Black disabled people?. Disability & Society, 37(4), 543-566.

Berghs, M. (2022). Let's Get Back to Normal? COVID-19 and the Logic of Cure. Frontiers in Sociology, 7, 782582.

Bhugra, D., Brown, B., & Svirydzenka, N. (2022). Mental health literacy in low-and middle-income countries. In Oxford textbook of Social Psychiatry (pp. 73-77). Oxford Textbooks in Psychiatry.

Bhui, K., Mooney, R., Joseph, D., McCabe, R., Newbigging, K., McCrone, P., Raghavan, R., Keating, F. and Husain, (2025). Professional experiences on use of the mental health act in ethnically diverse populations: a photovoice study. BMJ Mental Health, 28(1).

, Daye, M. and Mortimer, K. (2024), 'Legitimacy and Inclusivity in Place Branding', Annals of Tourism Research. 109.

 

, and Cartwright. E. (2024), Envisioning the role of ‘place’ in charity marketing and nonprofit brand identity, in Future of Charity Marketing, Eds Mitchell, S. and Hyde, F. Routledge Studies in Marketing. Available at:

 

, Daye, M. and Mortimer, K. (2022), 'Multi-stakeholder perspective on the role of universities in place branding', Journal of Place Management and Development. 15(2): 112-129.

 

Bodini, L., Bonetto, C., Colombi, M., Barbieri, N., Van Bortel, T., & Lasalvia, A. (2024). Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey. Cogent Psychology, 11(1), 2351151.

 

Boz, N. & Ersahin, Z. (2024). Digital Media and the Sacred. In Pihlaja, S. & Ringrow, H. The Routledge Handbook of Language and Religion. Routledge.

 

Brown, B. (2023). Understanding mental distress: Knowledge practice and neoliberal reform in community mental health services: Rich Moth, Bristol: Policy Press, 2023, 264p. ISBN: 978-1447349891.

 

Brown, B., & Lakhanpaul, M. (2022). Bringing the Two Cultures of the Arts and Sciences Together in Complex Health Interventions. In Multidisciplinarity and Interdisciplinarity in Health (pp. 415-436). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

 

Çapar-Ta艧kesen, T., Kahya, Y., I艧谋k, H., & Ersahin, Z. (2023). Turkish adaptation study of the computer assisted maltreatment inventory (CAMI) and its relation to psychological symptoms. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 32(3), 467–486.

 

Chigeza, S., Wilson Fadiji, A., & Matamela, N. (2024). A Scoping Review of the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Family Wellbeing in Africa. The Family Journal, 10664807241269507.

 

Cena, E., Brooks, J., Day, W., Goodman, S., Rousaki, A., Ruby-Granger, V., & Seymour-Smith, S. (2024). Quality Criteria: General and Specific Guidelines for Qualitative Approaches in Psychology Research. A Concise Guide for Novice Researchers and Reviewers. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23.

Coen-Sanchez, K., Ebenso, B., El-Mowafi, I. M., Berghs, M., Idriss-Wheeler, D., & Yaya, S. (2022). Repercussions of overturning Roe v. Wade for women across systems and beyond borders. Reproductive Health, 19(1), 184.

Coope, J., Barrett, A., Brown, B., Crossley, M., Raghavan, R., & Sivakami, M. (2020). Resilience, mental health and urban migrants: a narrative review. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, 16(2), 137-159.

Cromhout, A., Schutte, L., Wissing, M. P., Wilson Fadiji, A., Guse, T., & Mbowa, S. (2023). Psychometric properties of the Harmony in Life Scale in South African and Ghanaian samples. African Journal of Psychological Assessment, 5, 122.

Cunningham, E., Raman, S., Taylor, A., Svirydzenka, N., Siddiqi, A. M., Abdinasir, K., & Raghavan, R. (2024). Supporting the mental health of young people from ethnically diverse groups during the transition from primary to secondary school. Health Education Journal, 83(5), 504-518.

Davies, R., Merry, K., & Allman, Z. (2024) UDL and the Social/Emotional Aspects of Learning: Embedding Mental Wellbeing is Everyone's Business. All Ireland Journal of Higher Education, 16(2). doi:

Eden-Barnard, J., Briah, R., Dunkley, C., Neal, H., Williams, S., Brown, D., and Morrison, R. (2023) Professional Curiosity: How do you know what you don’t know? Probation Quarterly 28: 40-44

Elsey, C., Southwood, J., Winter, P., Thomas, G., Litchfield, S. J., Ogweno, S., & Billington, L. (2024). Assessment of the delivery and implementation of the Football Association’s Heads Up mental health promotion campaign. Sport in Society, 27(9), 1437-1461.

Elsey, C., Winter, P., Litchfield, S. J., Ogweno, S., & Southwood, J. (2023). Professional sport and initial mental health public disclosure narratives. Communication & Sport, 11(3), 489-508.

Ersahin, Z. (2023). Videoconferencing Therapy. In T. Hanley & C. Winter (5th Eds). . London: Sage.

Ersahin, Z. (2022). Post-traumatic growth among Syrian refugees in Turkey: the role of coping strategies and religiosity, Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse Psychological Issues, 41(4), 2398–2407.

Ersahin, Z. (2021). Care, Spiritual Care, and Modern Health Care: Developments, Concepts, and Debates. In H. Weiss, K. H. Federschmidt, D. Louw, & L. Sauer Bredvik, Care, Healing, and Human Well-Being within Interreligious Discourses. Germany: Sun Media.

Ersahin, S. & Ersahin, Z. (2021). Healing, Care, and Well-Being in Islamic Tradition. In H. Weiss, K. H. Federschmidt, D. Louw, & L. Sauer Bredvik. Care, Healing, and Human Well-Being within Interreligious Discourses. Germany: Sun Media.

Farooqi, A., Jutlla, K., Raghavan, R., Wilson, A., Uddin, M. S., Akroyd, C., ... & Farooqi, A. T. (2022). Developing a toolkit for increasing the participation of black, Asian and minority ethnic communities in health and social care research. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 22, 1-16.

Gheorghe, C. M., Slack, O., & Wilson, A. D. (2024). A thematic analysis of the perceptions of reversible inhibition of sperm under guidance as a potential family planning method in the United Kingdom. Urologia Journal, 03915603241261813. https://doi.org/10.1177/03915603241261813

Gregory, A. & Virmani, S. (2025). ‘Staying Human in a Smart Machine World’, in Cheng, A. & Ver膷i膷, D. (ed.) ‘AI and Strategic Communication’. Wiley. (In press)

Gregory, A., Virmani, S. & Valin, J. (2023). ‘Humans needed, more than ever – An analysis of the use of AI in public relations and the impact on public relations work’. CIPR report, launched at the CIPR International Annual General Meeting.

Guo, L., Van Bortel, T., Lombardo, C., Martin, S., Crepaz-Keay, D., McDaid, S., ... & Davidson, G. (2025). Does living with children link to unequal impacts of the pandemic on mental health and emotional experiences?. Journal of Public Mental Health.

Herring, L. Y., Dallosso, H., Schreder, S., Smith, E. J., Waheed, G., Gray, L. J., Khunti, K., Yates, T., Highton, P. J., Rowlands, A. v., Hudson, I., Seidu, S., & Davies, M. J. (2021). Physical activity after cardiac EventS (PACES): A group education programme with subsequent text message support designed to increase physical activity in individuals with diagnosed coronary heart disease: A randomised controlled trial. Open Heart, 8(1), 1–9.

Hine, R., Gladstone, B., Reupert, A., O’Dea, L., Cuff, R., Yates, S. Hagstrom, A., McGaw, V. & Foster, K. (2023) StigmaBeat: Collaborating with rural young people to co-design films aimed at reducing mental health stigma, Qualitative Health Research

Howard, F., Glenister, S., and McShane, B. (Eds.) (2024) Youth, Music and Measurement, Palgrave Macmillan, London & New York.

Ifeagwu, S.C., Nakaboga Kikonyogo, R., Nakkazi, S., Beinomugisha, J., Ojiambo Wandera, S., Kiwanuka, S.N., King, R., Van Bortel, T., Brayne, C. and Parkes-Ratanshi, R. (2024). “Sickness has no time”: Awareness and perceptions of health care workers on universal health coverage in Uganda. Plos One, 19(7), e0306922.

Illingworth, P. (2023). But This Is Not New: Climate Change and Global Mental Health. In Handbook of Social Sciences and Global Public Health (pp. 2139-2156). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Illingworth, P. (2021). Culturally sensitive, localized, Universal Mental Health Care. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 28(6), 941-942.

Illingworth, P. (2021). Covid-19 the Trigger for SDG Solutions in Mental Health. Mental Health: Global Challenges Journal, 4(1).

Illingworth, P. (2021). How do we engage global communities in the de-stigmatisation of mental illness?. British Journal of Nursing, 30(3), 184-187.

Illingworth, P. (2021). COVID-19 the Trigger for SDG Solutions in a Revised WHO Mental Health Action Plan. Mental Health: Global Challenges, 4(1), 4-8.

Jiang, F., Lu, S., Ji, L. J., & Wang, H. J. (2023). Culture and the way of granting job autonomy: Goal or execution?. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 96(3), 624-645.

Jiang, F., Lu, S., & Zhang, R. (2021). Red and risk preferences: The effects of culture and individual differences. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making. doi:10.1002/bdm.2233

Jiang, F., Lu, S., Zhu, X., & Song, X. (2021). Social media impacts the relation between interpersonal conflict and job performance. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 59(3), 420–441. doi:10.1111/1744-7941.12250

John, A., Lee, S.C., Solomon, S., Crepaz-Keay, D., McDaid, S., Morton, A., Davidson, G., Van Bortel, T. and Kousoulis, A.A. (2021). Loneliness, coping, suicidal thoughts and self-harm during the COVID-19 pandemic: a repeat cross-sectional UK population survey. BMJ Open, 11(12), e048123.

Jordan, A., & Wilson, A. D. (2023). A comprehensive overview by region of condoms, natural family planning, and spermicide as a contraceptive method among men aged 13–54 years attending contraceptive services in England. Public Health, 219, 110-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2023.03.023

Kambashi, N., Rechdan, J., Noon, E., & Wilson, A. D. (2023). Adult male rape myths in England since 1994: A systemic mixed methods review. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law.

Khumalo, I. P., Selvam, S. G., & Wilson Fadiji, A. (2023). The well-being correlates of religious commitment amongst South African and Kenyan students. South African Journal of Psychology, 53(4), 589-602.

Khumalo, I. P., Appiah, R., & Wilson Fadiji, A. (2022). Measuring positive mental health and depression in Africa: A variable-based and person-centred analysis of the Dual-Continua Model. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 885278.

Khumalo, I. P., de Klerk, W., & Fadiji, A. W. (2022). Nature and role of student hope and meaning in goal setting: implications for higher education in South Africa. In Embracing Well-Being in Diverse African Contexts: Research Perspectives (pp. 247-273). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Kumar, M. T., Kar, N., Namboodiri, V., Joy, A., Sreeenivasan, D., Kumar, S., & Bortel, T. V. (2023). Post-traumatic stress and depression following a landslide linked to the 2018 floods in Kerala, India: Relevance of screening. Journal of Emergency Management (Weston, Mass.), 21(1), 85-96.

Lakhanpaul, M., Svirydzenka, N., & Koch, M. (2024). The hidden crisis affecting children and families in temporary accommodation in the UK.

Lasalvia, A., Bodini, L., Pace, D., Colombi, M., Caruson, M. M., Van Bortel, T., & Bonetto, C. (2024). Experienced discrimination and internalized stigma among people infected with SARS鈥怌oV鈥2 and surviving COVID鈥19: Association with anxiety, depression, and insomnia symptoms. Journal of Community Psychology, 52(7), 910-928.

Letsoalo, T. S., Chigeza, S., & Fadiji, A. W. (2024). An exploration of the relational well-being of African International Students at a South African University. South African Journal of Higher Education, 38(4), 107-129.

Li, J., Jin, Y., Xu, S., Wilson, A., Chen, C., & Wang, Y. (2024). The influence of the severity of gender dysphoria on anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and non-suicidal self-injury in Chinese transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse youth. International Journal of Transgender Health, 25(3), 456-470.

Li, J., Jin, Y., Xu, S., Luo, X., Wilson, A., Li, H., Wang, X., Sun, X. & Wang, Y. (2023). Anxiety and depression symptoms among youth survivors of childhood sexual abuse: a network analysis. BMC Psychology, 11(1), 278. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-023-01275-3

Li, J., Jin, Y., Xu, S., Wilson, A., Chen, C., Luo, X., Liu, Y., Ling, X., Sun, X. & Wang, Y. (2023). Effects of bullying on anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder among sexual minority youths: network analysis. JMIR Public Health and Surveillance, 9(1), e47233.

Lin, Y., Xie, H., Huang, Z., Zhang, Q., Wilson, A., Hou, J., Zhao, X., Wang, Y., Pan, B. Liu, Y., Han, M. & Chen, R. (2021). The mental health of transgender and gender non-conforming people in China: a systematic review. The Lancet Public Health, 6(12), e954-e969. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(21)00236-X

Lister, K. and Allman, Z. (2024) Embedding mental wellbeing in the curriculum: a collaborative definition and suite of examples in practice. Frontiers in Education. 8:1157614. doi:

Lombardo, C., Guo, L., Solomon, S., Crepaz-Keay, D., McDaid, S., Thorpe, L., ... & Van Bortel, T. (2023). Inequalities and mental health during the Coronavirus pandemic in the UK: a mixed-methods exploration. BMC Public Health, 23(1), 1830.

Lu, S., Jiang, F., Lan, J. & Wang, T. (2024). The funnier, the happier? The interplay between interpersonal humor styles on mental health via gratitude. Current Psychology, 43 (5), 4394-4403.

Lyons, V., Oliver, E., Knifton, C., & Molesworth, S. (2022). Role of Admiral Nurses in supporting people with learning disabilities and dementia. Learning Disability Practice, 25(6).

Madill, A., Shloim, N., Brown, B., Hugh鈥怞ones, S., Plastow, J., & Setiyawati, D. (2022). Mainstreaming global mental health: Is there potential to embed psychosocial well鈥恇eing impact in all global challenges research?. Applied Psychology: Health and Well鈥怋别颈苍驳, 14(4), 1291-1313.

Marandure, B.N, Hall, J., & Noreen, S. (2024). “…They’re talking to you as if they’re kind of dumbing it down.” A thematic analysis of Black students’ perceived reasons for the university awarding gap. British Educational Research Journal, 50 (3), 1172-1188 https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3963

Marandure, B.N., Mhizha, S., Wilson A. & Nhunzvi, C (2023). Understanding the nature of substance use in Zimbabwe: State of the art and ways forward: A scoping review protocol. Plos One, 18(3): e0272240. https://doi.org/10.1371/ journal.pone.0272240

Marandure, B.N, Mhizha, S. & Wilson A. (2022) “Spice was made, by the devil himself”: A thematic analysis of the experience of an addiction to synthetic cannabinoids. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 55(3), pp321–329 https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2022.2083534

Maybery, D., Grant, A., Piché, G., Yates, S., Ruud, T., Dunkley-Smith, A. and Davidson, G. (2024) Summarising quantitative outcomes in parental mental illness research, International Journal of Mental Health Nursing.

McShane, B., and Whelan, M. (Eds.) Youth, Transitions and Social Justice (2025) Bristol University Press.

McShane, B. (2025) Safe Masculinities: Doing critical gender work around violence in McShane, B., and Whelan, M. (Eds.) Youth, Transitions and Social Justice (2025) Bristol University Press.

McShane, B (2024) Young men, lyrics and violence: The music studio as informal educational space in Howard, F., Glenister, S., and McShane, B. (Eds.) (2024) Youth, Music and Measurement, Palgrave Macmillan, London & New York.

Mhizha, S., Marandure, B. N., & Chikoko, W. (2021) Resilience Based Interventions to Street Childhood Among Street children in Zimbabwe. In Chirisa, I. & Chigudu, A. (Eds). Resilience and Sustainability in Urban Africa. Springer Nature, Singapore (pp 115-129).

Mooney, R., Dempsey, C., Brown, B. J., Keating, F., Joseph, D., & Bhui, K. (2023). Using participatory action research methods to address epistemic injustice within mental health research and the mental health system. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1075363.

Mooney, R., Newbigging, K., McCabe, R., McCrone, P., Halvorsrud, K., Raghavan, R., ... & Bhui, K. (2022). Experience-based investigation and codesign of approaches to prevent and reduce Mental Health Act use (CO-PACT): a protocol. BMJ Open, 12(2), e060086.

Noreen, S., & Dritschel, B. (2023). Thinking about the consequences: The detrimental role of future thinking on intrapersonal problem-solving in depression. Plos One, 18(8), e0289676.

Noreen, S., & Dritschel, B. (2022). In the here and now: Future thinking and social problem-solving in depression. Plos One, 17(6), e0270661.

Ogunbode, C. A.,...Lu, S.,…& Karasu, M. (2022). Climate anxiety, wellbeing and pro-environmental action: Correlates of negative emotional responses to climate change in 32 countries. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 84(18), 101887. 10.1016/j.jenvp.2022.101887

Ogunbode, C. A.,...Lu, S.,…& Lomas, M. J. (2021). Negative emotions about climate change are related to insomnia symptoms and mental health: Cross-sectional evidence from 25 countries. Current Psychology, 1-10.

Ola, B., Olushola, O., Ebenso, B. & Berghs, M. (2024). Sickle Cell Disorder and Its Psychosocial Burdens in Africa. In Sickle Cell Disease in Sub-Saharan Africa Public Health Perspectives. Bukola, B., Kanayo,K & Inusa, B. (eds.). London: Routledge.

Park, J.,...Lu, S.,... & Yadav, R. (2022). Comparison of the inter-item correlations of the Big Five Inventory-10 (BFI-10) between Western and non-Western contexts. Personality and Individual Differences, 196, 111751.

Piché, G., Davidson, G., Dunkley-Smith, A., Grant, A., Yates, S. & Maybery, D. (2024) Exploring past research to move forward: a scoping review of aims, outcomes, and recommendations in parental mental illness qualitative research, Frontiers in Public Health.

Raghavan, R., Brown, B., Horne, F., Kumar, S., Parameswaran, U., Ali, A.B., Raghu, A., Wilson, A., Svirydzenka, N., Venkateswaran, C. and Kumar, M., (2023). Stigma and mental health problems in an Indian context. Perceptions of people with mental disorders in urban, rural and tribal areas of Kerala. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 69(2), 362-369.

Raghavan, R., Brown, B., Horne, F., Kamal, S.R., Parameswaran, U., Raghu, A., Wilson, A., Venkateswaran, C., Svirydzenka, N., Lakhanpaul, M. and Dasan, C., (2023). Multiple mental health literacies in a traditional temple site in Kerala: The intersection between beliefs, spiritual and healing regimes. Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry, 47(3), 743-765.

Raghavan, R., Brown, B., Horne, F., Kumar, S., Parameswaran, U., Ali, A.B., Raghu, A., Wilson, A., Svirydzenka, N., Venkateswaran, C. and Kumar, M.(2023). Stigma and mental health problems in an Indian context. Perceptions of people with mental disorders in urban, rural and tribal areas of Kerala. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 69(2), 362-369.

Raghavan, R., & Jones, K. (2023). Family networks and voluntary sector participation in the care of people with intellectual disability. Psychiatry of Intellectual Disability Across Cultures, 12, 199-215.

Raghavan, R., Brown, B., Hussain, S., Kumar, S., Wilson, A., Svirydzenka, N., ... & Wilson, M. (2022). How do Muslim service users, caregivers, and community members in Malappuram, Kerala, use their faith to address the challenges associated with mental ill health?. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 25(10), 1012-1025.

Raghavan, R., Brown, B., Coope, J., Crossley, M., Sivakami, M., Gawde, N., ... & Heblikar, D. (2022). Idioms of resilience: Mental health and migration in India. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 68(8), 1607-1613.

Raghavan, R., Coope, J., Brown, B., Sivakami, M., Jamwal, S., & Pendse, T. (2021). The untold story of mental health and resilience of internal migrants in India. Mental Health, Mental Illness and Migration, 247-259.

Reupert, A., Gladstone, B., Hine, R., Yates, S., McGaw, V., Charles, G., Drost, L. & Foster, K. (2021) Stigma in relation to families living with parental mental illness: An integrative review, International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 30, 6-26

Reupert, A. et al (2021) Prato Research Collaborative for Change in Parent and Child Mental Health: Principles and recommendations for working with children and parents living with parental mental illness, Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry, 63(3), 350-353

Ruby-Granger, V., Wilde, D., Seymour-Smith, S., & Zysk, E. (2023). Struggling to manage: A constructivist grounded theory of hoarding behaviours. Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 33(5), 1280-1296

Schutte, L., Wissing, M. P., Fadiji, A. W., Mbowa, S., Shoko, P. M., & Schutte, W. D. (2022). Exploration of harmony as a quality of happiness: Findings from South Africa and Ghana. In Embracing well-being in diverse African contexts: Research perspectives (pp. 319-343). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Simmonds, B., & Berghs, M. (2024). Intersections of ageing and disability during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Sociology, 9, 1501580.

Smith, E., Short, E., Rai, R., Pinnky, R., & Wilson, A. (2023). It Is Not Your Fault , Tell Someone鈥: Case Studies of Young Women ’ s Experiences of Online Grooming in England. Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice, 6(1), 7–24.

Tu, Y., Sarkar, K., Svirydzenka, N., Palfreyman, Z., Parry, Y.K., Ankers, M., Parikh, P., Raghavan, R. and Lakhanpaul, M., 2024. Interventions to promote the health and well-being of children under 5s experiencing homelessness in high-income countries: a scoping review. BMJ Open, 14(1), p.e076492.

Van Bortel, T., Wickramasinghe, N. D., Treacy, S., Khan, N., Ouali, U., Sumathipala, A., ... & Brouwers, E. (2024). Anticipated and experienced stigma and discrimination in the workplace among individuals with major depressive disorder in 35 countries: qualitative framework analysis of a mixed-method cross-sectional study. BMJ Open, 14(6), e077528.

Van Bortel, T., Lombardo, C., Guo, L., Solomon, S., Martin, S., Hughes, K., ... & Kousoulis, A. A. (2022). The mental health experiences of ethnic minorities in the UK during the Coronavirus pandemic: A qualitative exploration. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 875198.

Virmani, S. & Reeve, J. (2025). ‘Creative Exploration of Our Relationship with AI’, in James, A. (ed.) ‘PLAYI – The Value of Play in HE’. (In press)

Virmani, S. & Ashraf, J. (2024). ‘Behind the Guardrails – Can Users Bypass AI Safeguards?’ Available at:

Wang, Y., Feng, Y., Han, M., Duan, Z., Wilson, A., Fish, J., Sun, S. & Chen, R. (2021). Methods of attempted suicide and risk factors in LGBTQ+ youth. Child Abuse & Neglect, 122, 105352. doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105352

Wang, Y., Timms, F., Li, J., & Yu, H. (2024). Benefits of nature-based intervention in combating the impact of urbanization on psychopathology in industrialized societies. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 37(3), 202-211.

Wang, Y., Ma, Z., Wilson, A., Hu, Z., Ying, X., Han, M., Cui, Z., & Chen, R. (2021). Psychopathological symptom network structure in transgender and gender queer youth reporting parental psychological abuse: a network analysis. BMC Medicine, 19(1), 1-15. doi: 10.1186/s12916-021-02091-5

Wang, Y., Wilson, A., Hu, Z. Lu, L., Li, W., Peng, K., Wu, L., Xin, Y., Drescher, J., Ou, J., & Chen, R. (2021) Counselling and psychotherapy service use in Chinese sexual minority populations: a nationwide survey. BMC Psychiatry 21, 11.

White, H. J., Meyer, C., & Haycraft, E. (2022). Family mealtime emotions and food parenting practices among mothers of young children: Development of the Mealtime Emotions Measure for Parents (MEM鈥怭). Maternal & Child Nutrition, 18(3), e13346.

Wildschut, A., & Wilson-Fadiji, A. (2024). COVID-19 experience and student wellbeing amongst publicly funded higher education students in South Africa after the first, and second waves. Higher Education, 1-23.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Eloff, I. (2024, December). Student wellbeing and academic support in higher education. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 9, p. 1119110). Frontiers Media SA.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Lomas, T. (2024). Understanding the association between education and wellbeing: an exploration of the Gallup World Poll. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 19(5), 2467-2501.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Eloff, I. (2024, December). Student wellbeing and academic support in higher education. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 9, p. 1119110). Frontiers Media SA.

Wilson Fadiji, A., Luescher, T., & Morwe, K. (2023). The dance of the positives and negatives of life: student wellbeing in the context of# Feesmustfall-related violence. South African Journal of Higher Education, 37(2), 1-25.

Wilson Fadiji, A., Chigeza, S., & Shoko, P. (2023). Exploring Meaning-Making Among University Students in South Africa During the COVID-19 Lockdown. In Emerging Adulthood in the COVID-19 Pandemic and Other Crises: Individual and Relational Resources (pp. 97-115). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Khumalo, I. P. (2023). Family values and social well-being: Do motives for activities mediate?. Current Psychology, 42(6), 5001-5014.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Reddy, V. (2023). Well-being and mathematics achievement: What is the role of gender, instructional clarity, and parental involvement?. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1044261.

Fadiji, A. W., Chigeza, S., & Kgopa, B. (2023). Who does better on life satisfaction and meaning in life? A mixed-methods exploration of demographic characteristics and well-being in Ghana. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 33(1), 43-49.

Wilson Fadiji, A., Khumalo, I. P., & Zulu, N. T. (2022). Well-Being in Africa: Towards an Africa (n) centred positive psychology. In Embracing well-being in diverse African contexts: Research perspectives (pp. 31-49). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Wilson Fadiji, A., De la Rosa, P. A., Counted, V., De Kock, J. H., Bronkhorst, W. L. R., Joynt, S., ... & Cowden, R. G. (2023). Flourishing during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study in South Africa. Psychological Reports, 00332941231161753.

Wilson Fadiji, A., & Wissing, M. P. (2022). Positive psychology in sub-Saharan Africa. In The international handbook of positive psychology: A global perspective on the science of positive human existence (pp. 307-354). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Wilson, A., Khumalo, I. P., & Mpofu, E. (2022). Meaning in life among Ghanaian university students: does religious commitment matter?. Journal of Religion and Health, 61(3), 2482-2499.

Wilson, A., & Williamson, I. R. (2024). “Navigating Risk and Responsibility?”: A Mixed-Methods Study Addressing Stigma and Well-Being Among Men Who Have ‘Sex on Chems’ with Other Men in the English Midlands. In Healthcare (Vol. 12, No. 23, p. 2479). MDPI.

Wilson, A., Jin, Y., Xiao, C., Yan, H., Yu. B. Li, J., Wang, YY. (2023) A Confounding Discourse Analysis of Vietnamese Sex Workers’ Talk in the City of Kaiyuan, China. Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Wilson, A. (2022). Men as Irrational Variables in Family Planning? Understanding the Landscape, Technological Advancements, and Extending Health Psychology Theories and Models. Technologies of Reproduction Across the Lifecourse, 225-246. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/978-1-80071-733-620221020/full/html

Wilson, A., Wang, Y.Y., Chen, R., Cen, P., Wang, Y., Yao, X., Wang, T., Li, S., & Yan, H. (2021) A thematic analysis of experiences of HIV risks among female sex workers in the Yunnan-Vietnam Chinese border region. BMC Women's Health 21, 7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-020-01143-x

Woods, R. H., Kerr, D., Woods, L. F., Raghavan, R., Cornelius, P., & Brown, A. (2023). 天美传媒 and young adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities: Evidence of intelligible subvocal language. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 143, 104633.

Wydera, S., & Wilson, A. (2022). A 16-year overview of vasectomy and vasectomy reversal in the United Kingdom. AJOG Global Reports, 2(4), 100105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xagr.2022.100105

Yates, S., Gladstone, B., Foster, K., Hagstrom, A. S., Day, L., Cuff, R., & Hine, R., (2023) Epistemic injustice in experiences of young people with parents with mental health challenges, Sociology of Health & Illness

Yates, S. & Gatsou, L. (2023) Constrained sense-making in families with parental mental illness and the importance of intra-family communication for positive outcomes, British Journal of Social Work, 53(5), 2742-2761

Yates, S. & Gatsou, L. (2022) Supporting families with parental mental health challenges: A guide for social workers. Community Care Inform:

Yates, S. & Gatsou, L. (2021) Idealisation and stigmatisation of parenting in families with parental mental illness. Social Science & Medicine: Qualitative Research in Health:

Partnerships and collaborations

Aarhus University, Ethiopia

Association of Surgeons in Primary Care, UK

Australian Catholic University, Australia

Department of Psychiatry, University of Lagos, Nigeria

Drama Research Group, Loughborough University, UK

Foundation for Medical Research, India

Institute of Child Health, University College London, UK

Institute of Cultural Psychiatry, University of Manchester, UK

Institute of Health Management Pachod, Pune, India

Institute of Mental Health, Nottingham, UK

Kindled Spirits (primarily India)

Kings College London, UK

Kshamata, India

Leicester Partnership NHS Trust

Mental Health Action Trust and MEHAC Foundation, Kerala India

Monash University, Australia

National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India

Public Health Resource Society, India

Queen's University Belfast, Ireland

Society for Intercultural Pastoral Care and Counselling, Germany

Stockholm University, Sweden

Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India

Trade Sexual Health, Leicester, UK

Ulster University, UK

University of East Anglia, UK

University of Toronto, Canada

Université du Québec en Outaouais, Canada

World Vasectomy Day Network, Global

Our members

  • Dr Maria Berghs

    Associate Professor

    Maria.Berghs@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0)116 257 7910

  • Dr Shalini Bisani

    Lecturer in Marketing

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    N/A

  • Professor Brian Brown

    Professor of Health Communication

    brown@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0)116 207 8755

  • Dr Christopher Elsey

    VC2020 Lecturer in Health and Well Being in Society

    christopher.elsey@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0)116 207 8812

  • Dr Zehra Ersahin

    Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology

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    0116 207 8104

  • Dr Angelina Wilson Fadiji

    Senior Lecturer in Psychology

    angelina.wilsonfadiji@dmu.ac.uk

    N/A

  • Dr Anja Finger

    Subject Lead and Senior Lecturer in Health and Wellbeing

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  • Dr Jess Hall

    Lecturer in Psychology

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    +44 (0)116 250 6155

  • Mr Paul Illingworth

    Head of the Leicester School of Allied Health Sciences

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    0116 205 8344

  • Dr Chris Knifton

    Associate Professor - Neurocognitive and Neurodevelopmental Education

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  • Dr Su Lu

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  • Ms Roz Morrison

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  • Dr Saima Noreen

    VC2020 Senior Lecturer

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    +44 (0)116 257 7331

  • Dr Zoe Palfreyman

    Lecturer in Psychology

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    +44 (0)116 257 7881

  • Dr Roshan Rai

    Senior Lecturer

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    +44 (0)116 257 7737

  • Dr Sally Ruane

    Reader in Social Policy 鈥 Director of Health Policy Research Unit

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  • Dr Victoria Ruby-Granger

    Senior Lecturer in Psychology

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    Ext 4776

  • Dr Emily Smith

    Lecturer in Developmental Psychology

    emily.smith2@dmu.ac.uk

    0116 257 7498

  • Dr Monika Sobczak-Edmans

    Senior Lecturer in Psychology

    monika.sobczak-edmans@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0) 116 250 6476

  • Professor Nadia Svirydzenka

    Professor of Cultural Identities

    nadzeya.svirydzenka@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0)116 250 6483

  • Dr Swati Virmani

    Senior Lecturer in Economics

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  • Dr Meredith Wilkinson

    Senior Lecturer in Psychology

    mwilkinson@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0) 116 250 6488

  • Dr Amanda Wilson

    Associate Professor Research and Innovation (Psychology)

    amanda.wilson@dmu.ac.uk

    0116 2078 815

  • Dr Scott Yates

    Associate Professor

    syates@dmu.ac.uk

    +44 (0)116 207 8703

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