PI: Dr Harbinder Kaur Sandhu, Division of Health Sciences, Warwick Medical School

Health Psychology is defined as 'the aggregate of specific educational, scientific and professional contribution of the discipline of psychology to the promotion and maintenance of health, the promotion and treatment of illness and related dysfunction' (Matarazzo 1980). It has become a recognised field within healthcare research and a growing number of projects across various departments in the University (Warwick Medical School, School of Health and Social Studies and Institute of Digital Healthcare) are either Health Psychology led or have a significant Health Psychology contribution. The generic application of knowledge and skills makes it a unique subject that can be applied to health, business, media, social sciences and so on. Within the University there are growing number of Health Psychologists (defined by either having completed stage 1 (an MSc in Health Psychology) and/or stage 2, (a PhD or Professional Doctorate in Health Psychology). They bring with them various expertise and experiences within Health Psychology and some also combine the academic work with an applied clinical setting.

The aim of this network is to bring this expertise together and to provide a platform for collaborative research opportunities across the different departments and to provide a forum for support for research and teaching activity too.

For more information on the 'Health Pschology @ Warwick' network and network members please visit: HP@W

Proposed activities

Face to face meetings

We also propose to have monthly face to face meetings (network members) held at the University of Warwick. This will give an opportunity to discuss latest research and opportunities for collaborative work across different departments.

Skills swap workshops

Within the network we also propose to have “skill swap sessions” where if any member has attended a recent conference or training in Health Psychology, we will exchange knowledge and skills within the group.

Support for research

As Health Psychologist working in a range of different areas across the university, the network will also provide an opportunity to provide support for each other. This could be related to grant writing, writing papers and any other research related question specifically related to the application of Health Psychology.

Collaborations with other members of staff (sharing of expertise across different departments)

From previous experience we have found that there is a growing recognition for the application of Health Psychology in the development of interventions, randomised controlled trials, qualitative and mixed methods research. This includes behaviour change, motivation understanding health beliefs and illness representations to name a few. With the new age of digital healthcare we also see scope to collaborate with Warwick manufacturing and the digital lab.