Alexandra Pollitt
Director of Research
Research interests
- Mental Health
- Policy
- Public health
Biography
Alexandra is Director of Research at the Policy Institute. She works on a wide range of topics, but her main focus is science policy.
Her recent work includes a series of studies estimating the economic returns of biomedical research, a study mapping the global mental health research funding landscape and a scientometric evaluation of the European Research Council’s portfolio. She has carried out extensive work on the societal impact of research, including a comparison of the relative value researchers and the public place on different kinds of impact.
Alex has expertise in a range of qualitative and quantitative methodologies, and has taught research methods, communications and project management internationally.
She holds an MA in Experimental Psychology from Oxford University and previously worked in psychiatry research at the University of Cambridge. Before joining King’s, Alex spent six years working in policy research and analysis at RAND Europe. She has also worked in impact evaluation for an international NGO.
Research
Stroke Research Group
We are a multidisciplinary group (epidemiologists, stroke physicians, GPs, social scientists, statisticians, health informaticians and health economists) focused on stroke and with a wider interest in vascular long-term conditions and analytics.
Improving the lives of stroke survivors with data
We aim to improve the lives of stroke survivors through a programme of stakeholder engagement, data collection, analysis and modelling, and use in practice.
Project status: Ongoing
Understanding mental health in the UK welfare system: representations of distress among working-age benefit claimants and their implications for assessment and support
A qualitative exploration of UK benefits claimants' understanding of mental distress and how this affects interactions with welfare and employment systems.
Project status: Ongoing
News
New policy briefing calls for action to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the mental health of young people
Researchers at King’s College London and Oxford University have outlined a series of recommendations to address anticipated short- and long-term challenges...
Features
Youth Mental Health and Covid-19: How can we build back fairer?
In 2021, a Policy Lab was held as the culminating event of a jointly run conference exploring the impacts of COVID-19 and related responses on the mental...
Research
Stroke Research Group
We are a multidisciplinary group (epidemiologists, stroke physicians, GPs, social scientists, statisticians, health informaticians and health economists) focused on stroke and with a wider interest in vascular long-term conditions and analytics.
Improving the lives of stroke survivors with data
We aim to improve the lives of stroke survivors through a programme of stakeholder engagement, data collection, analysis and modelling, and use in practice.
Project status: Ongoing
Understanding mental health in the UK welfare system: representations of distress among working-age benefit claimants and their implications for assessment and support
A qualitative exploration of UK benefits claimants' understanding of mental distress and how this affects interactions with welfare and employment systems.
Project status: Ongoing
News
New policy briefing calls for action to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the mental health of young people
Researchers at King’s College London and Oxford University have outlined a series of recommendations to address anticipated short- and long-term challenges...
Features
Youth Mental Health and Covid-19: How can we build back fairer?
In 2021, a Policy Lab was held as the culminating event of a jointly run conference exploring the impacts of COVID-19 and related responses on the mental...