Social Science, Health & Medicine Research

Research in the Department of Social Science, Health & Medicine (established January 2012) focuses on the social, political, economic, legal and ethical factors shaping developments in biomedicine, disease and healthcare and their implications.

We have research priorities in the following areas:

• global health inequalities;
• mental health, psychiatry and neuroscience;
• biomedicine, bioscience and society;
• developments in health and medical technologies, social science and aging;
• health policy and health economics;
• bioeconomies and commercial and economic factors in medical developments and health care;
• the problems of translational research;
• the definition and measurement of health and social outcomes by governments, insurers, professionals and patients.

The supervisory relationship is central to doctoral studies in the Department. Admission to the doctoral research programme is highly selective and is dependent upon a good match being found between student interests and supervisor capabilities. Each student is allocated a principal supervisor from within the Department, experienced in the relevant research area and responsible for all aspects of supervision. A second supervisor is allocated, who may be a member of the Department, or a specialist from another Department in the School. Research students are integrated within a community of research students, research fellows, visiting researchers and senior visiting academics from across the world, and have access to a range of formal and informal study groups and activities organised by this research community. Students also have access to graduate seminars, workshops, seminars and conferences, often in association with other departments in social sciences, arts and humanities and the Helath Schools within King's.

The Department of Social Science, Health & Medicine participates in the research training programme offered in the ESRC funded King's Interdisciplinary Social Sciences Doctoral Training Centre (KISS-DTC) and all incoming research students are allocated a programme of doctoral training to suit their specific needs which will be followed in the first year of study. KISS-DTC runs placement and knowledge-exchange programmes with organisations across the public and private sectors, and provides advanced doctoral training and summer school courses run collaboratively with other institutions. In addition, students on our doctoral programme audit parts of our MSc in Medicine, Science & Society, to provide background and skills in areas relevant to their research topic.