Communication Colloquium: Towards a More Creative Use of Health Psychology in Tackling Obesity
Monday, February 9, 2015 1:30pm to 2:45pm
About this Event
View map Free EventObesity is a significant and increasing worldwide health issue, and one that we have so far made very little impact in addressing. Much of the focus of research within Dr. Gillison’s discipline of health psychology focuses on improving the specification and efficacy of behavior change interventions delivered directly to people who want to - or who we think need to - adopt a healthier lifestyle. While such approaches will undoubtedly not provide the ultimate solution to the obesity epidemic, providing behavioral support is still a valuable component of any multifaceted approach to reducing obesity. These interventions would be more valuable still if they were better able to attract the people who currently access services the least but may benefit most (e.g., those from lower socio-economic groups), and if they were better integrated with other disciplines to look beyond individuals to their surrounding physical and social environment that undoubtedly contributes to their weight gain. In this talk, Dr. Gillison will present some of her recent research that attempts to integrate her background in theoretical approaches to behavior change with other perspectives, in trying to make headway in either of these agendas. She will discuss some of the challenges that this has generated, and ideas for future development related to the communication of health risks and messages that she hopes will be of interest to members of the Department.
Fiona Gillison is a Chartered Health Psychologist, and senior lecturer (associate professor) in the Department for Health at the University of Bath. Prior to undertaking her PhD in 2004, she worked for 9 years outside academia (as a social housing officer, community development worker, and stop smoking advisor) and brings this practical experience and broader social perspective to her research. Her research focusses on applying psychological theory into practice, in investigating how we can better support people to improve their health behaviors in the prevention and reduction of obesity. She is currently involved in a range of research studies including an intervention to promote weight loss in people with high cardio-vascular risk, investigations of how to communicate better with parents to engage them in weight management initiatives for their children, and investigating how social policies aimed at reducing obesity may impact people’s motivation for change.
Event Details
See Who Is Interested
0 people are interested in this event
User Activity
No recent activity