Professor Ben Baumberg Geiger
Professor in Social Science and Health
Research interests
- Mental Health
- Decent work & economic growth (SDG 8)
- Employment
- Employers
Biography
Ben is currently a Professor in Social Science and Health in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at King's College London, and co-leads the Work, welfare reform and mental health programme within the ESRC Centre for Society & Mental Health. He is also co-lead of the 'WelfareExperiences' project, a large mixed-methods coproduced comparison of how it feels to claim benefits in five European countries - the project website will be launched early in 2025.
Until July 2022, Ben was a Reader in Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Kent, where he helped co-found the University of Kent's Q-Step centre. For a time in 2015-16 he was also on secondment as a Policy Advisor at the Department of Work and Pensions.
His personal website is available at https://www.benbgeiger.co.uk/, and a full list of publications is available from http://www.benbgeiger.co.uk/publications.htm
Research
He has a wide range of research interests, currently focused on:
- Benefits/Social security
- Mental Health
- Disability
- Employment
- Decent work & economic growth (SDG 8)
Research Groups
Ben co-leads the ‘Work, welfare reform and mental health’ programme within the ESRC Centre for Society & Mental Health.
Teaching
Postgraduate
- 7SSHM504 Quantitative Data Analysis
- 7SSHM507 Data Manipulation and Management
Expertise and Public Engagement
Ben has done public engagement work with lots of different audiences:
- With policymakers: Ben worked on secondment at DWP in 2015-16, and continues to have regular meetings with DWP as well as other official bodies like the OBR, Audit Office, Parliamentary Select Committees etc.
- With the general public: Ben blogs at Inequalities and has written for e.g. the Guardian (see a full list of non-academic publications is available).
- With others: Ben regularly speaks to charities like Mind that are members of the Disability Benefits Consortium, and claimant- or disabled-person led groups such as the Committee on Social Security led by Experts by Experience, Chronic Illness Inclusion and Disability Rights UK.
Further details
Research
Work, Welfare and Mental Health: Transitions Over Time
Qualitative longitudinal research exploring journeys between work and welfare for people with experience of mental health problems.
Project status: Ongoing
News
New report calls on employers and the Government to realise the potential of Flex Plus working for disability inclusion
Researchers from the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health and King’s Business School have launched a new report which proposes 39 recommendations to...
43 per cent of people claiming benefits have had thoughts of self-harm in the last fortnight
“There is an ongoing narrative that many people receiving benefits do not really have mental health problems. Our study shows that their levels of mental...
€3 million awarded to analyse how it feels to claim benefits in different countries
A major new research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) will analyse how different welfare systems can affect people's mental health and...
Features
Unlocking the workplace for disabled people – the case for Flex Plus jobs as a pathway to work
The deep cuts to health and disability benefits announced in the government’s Pathways to Work green paper have been widely condemned. However, it is...
Back to Work or Back against the Wall: responding to the 2023 Autumn Statement
The 2023 Autumn Statement has proposed several changes to policy that aim to help people return to work after ill-health but will its approach actually...
Partnerships, Power, Potential: GHSM on from 10
This exhibition takes a look at the research being undertaken by GHSM academics and students across the world.
Spotlight
Gathering the evidence to reform the welfare system
The recent DWP Green Paper, entitled ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ has provoked a great deal of discussion from...
Research
Work, Welfare and Mental Health: Transitions Over Time
Qualitative longitudinal research exploring journeys between work and welfare for people with experience of mental health problems.
Project status: Ongoing
News
New report calls on employers and the Government to realise the potential of Flex Plus working for disability inclusion
Researchers from the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health and King’s Business School have launched a new report which proposes 39 recommendations to...
43 per cent of people claiming benefits have had thoughts of self-harm in the last fortnight
“There is an ongoing narrative that many people receiving benefits do not really have mental health problems. Our study shows that their levels of mental...
€3 million awarded to analyse how it feels to claim benefits in different countries
A major new research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) will analyse how different welfare systems can affect people's mental health and...
Features
Unlocking the workplace for disabled people – the case for Flex Plus jobs as a pathway to work
The deep cuts to health and disability benefits announced in the government’s Pathways to Work green paper have been widely condemned. However, it is...
Back to Work or Back against the Wall: responding to the 2023 Autumn Statement
The 2023 Autumn Statement has proposed several changes to policy that aim to help people return to work after ill-health but will its approach actually...
Partnerships, Power, Potential: GHSM on from 10
This exhibition takes a look at the research being undertaken by GHSM academics and students across the world.
Spotlight
Gathering the evidence to reform the welfare system
The recent DWP Green Paper, entitled ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ has provoked a great deal of discussion from...