Dr Josie Hamper is a Research Associate in Health Geography with over 12 years of qualitative health research experience. Prior to joining KCL, Josie held academic research roles at the University of Oxford (School of Geography) and Queen Mary University of London (School of Business and Management). She has a PhD (Human Geography) and MSc (Geographies of Health) from Queen Mary University of London, and an MA (Geography) from the University of St Andrews.

Josie is also a Visiting Researcher at the Visual Studies Lab, Tampere University, and Secretary of the Royal Geographical Society with IBG’s Geographies of Health and Wellbeing Research Group.

Research

• Geographies of health and wellbeing
• Social studies of medicine
• Childhood, care and parenting
• Sexual, reproductive and maternal health
• Urban health and inequalities
• Reproductive and digital health technologies
• Online visual cultures
• Research ethics and qualitative methods

Josie’s research focuses on how lived experiences and knowledges of health are shaped by new information and technology. This work sits across geography and social studies of health and medicine, with particular interests in reproduction, reproductive technologies, parenthood, early years and childhood.

Josie has published widely on people’s everyday encounters with digital health tools, such as reproductive health and parenting apps, and she recently completed a cross-European study at the University of Oxford on young adults’ encounters with health-related content on social media. As part of this work, Josie has advanced methods for studying digital images and online visual cultures of health.

Currently, Josie’s research examines disparities in access to Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) support across North West London, advancing geographical understandings of parenting, healthcare access and neurodiversity. This work is part of the project ‘Every Child Thriving? Multicultural Understandings of Child Development and SEND across North West London’ (2026-2027) in collaboration with Brent Council, parent carer forums, community researchers and other community/voluntary sector organisations. Funded by the NHS Northwest London Integrated Care Board (now part of NHS West and North London ICB), project outputs will include research-led training resources to build cultural competency amongst NHS staff who support children with additional needs and their families.

Expertise and public engagement

Josie has considerable public speaking and media experience. Her research areas are often covered in the media (including: fertility apps, self-tracking, and social media health advice), and she has worked with news organisations such as The Telegraph, iNews and BioNews.

Further details

See Josie's research profile