NIHR PRU Behavioural and Social Sciences

Picture of attendees at an event celebrating the end of the DEM-COMM (Dementia Community) programme in 2026 in Southampton

Explore the latest ​roundup of top stories from all our NIHR Applied Research Collaborations (ARCs) across the country:

👉 mailchi.mp/nihr/march-2...

Featuring the latest news, resources, blogs, events, opportunities & more

📨 Join the newsletter here: tinyurl.com/ARCsnewsletter

Come and join the NIHR Policy Research Unit Behavioural and Social Sciences!

We're a recruiting a Research Assistant/Research Fellow to be based @ucl-cbc.bsky.social.

For more details - and to apply by Tuesday 3rd March - visit the link below:

www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

Graphic announcing a late‑breaking call for abstracts for the 2026 Behaviour Change Conference – submit by 9 March 2026. The conference dates, 17–19 June, and a pre‑conference day on 16 June are shown. Logos for UCL Centre for Behaviour Change and NOVA Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública appear, along with a circular photo of a yellow building against a blue sky

📢 Late‑breaking call for abstracts - if you don’t already have a poster accepted for #BCConf2026, this is your chance to submit for a poster presentation. Be part of our biggest and best conference yet - and please share.
👉 Deadline: 09:00 (GMT) Monday 9 March
www.ucl.ac.uk/behaviour-ch...

Four images illustrating the CBC’s research themes: health and wellbeing, climate and sustainability, advancing behavioural science and its application, and organisational change.

⏰ 1 week left to apply for our Lecturer & Deputy Research Lead post.
Our interdisciplinary research tackles key societal challenges across four core themes, which you can read about on our website: www.ucl.ac.uk/behaviour-ch...
👉 Find out more & apply by 25 Feb: www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

The NIHR Applied Research Collaborations (ARCs) February 2026 newsletter The national newsletter from across all the NIHR ARCs. In this edition: The first major trial to reduce social media use among healthy adolescents, Continuous care from community-based midwives reduce...

🗞️ Read the February national roundup of top stories from all ARCs across the country:

mailchi.mp/nihr/februar...

Including news, resources, blogs, events, opportunities & much more

📨 Join the newsletter tinyurl.com/ARCsnewsletter

#denpruqm | NIHR Policy Research Unit Behavioural and Social Sciences We've had a great two days connecting with two other NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research) Policy Research Units. On Tuesday 27th January, we visited the Policy Research Unit in Dem...

We spent this week connecting with the @nihr.bsky.social Policy Research Units in Dementia and Neurodegeneration @denpru-qm.bsky.social and Policy Innovation and Evaluation @piru-lshtm.bsky.social.

Read more about what we got up to on our LinkedIn page below:

www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

Graphic announcing a UCL Centre for Behaviour Change job vacancy for Lecturer and Deputy Research Lead, with application deadline of 25 February.

📢 We're recruiting for a 'Lecturer and Deputy Research Lead' to join our management team.
We’re seeking an experienced researcher with expertise in behavioural science and research methods and a proven track record in leading projects.
👉 Find out more & apply by 25 Feb: www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

What you’ll get:
• Pay for your time and expertise.
• The chance to influence research that matters.

@beth-nichol.bsky.social @ucl-cbc.bsky.social @newcastleuni.bsky.social

Have you ever travelled or considering travelling outside the UK for dental, bariatric, cosmetic, or surgical procedures?

We want to hear from you!

Have your say on how we conduct our research
To show interest, please complete this short form:

👉 newcastlehealth.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

@laurajmcgowan.bsky.social @ucl-cbc.bsky.social @newcastleuni.bsky.social @england.nhs.uk
@nihr.bsky.social @nihrarcs.bsky.social @arc-west.bsky.social @arc-southlondon.bsky.social @arc-southlondon.bsky.social @nihrspcr.bsky.social @penarc.bsky.social @arcwessex.bsky.social

A flyer showing textual information for a NIHR Policy Research Unit study The text reads: Have You Experienced Both Cardiovascular Disease Risk and Mental Health Challenges? Share Your Story What’s the study about? Have You Experienced Both Cardiovascular Disease Risk and Mental Health Challenges? Share Your Story Researchers from the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Behavioural and Social Sciences are exploring how integrated care can be improved for people with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and mild-to-moderate mental health concerns You can take part if you: • Are aged 18 or over • Have experience with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, smoking, or physical inactivity AND • Mental health concerns such as anxiety, depression, or low mood What’s involved? • A 1:1 online interview (up to 60 minutes) • Questions about your experiences with care • A £20 online shopping voucher as a thank you Why take part? Your voice will help shape national recommendations for improving integrated care for hearts and minds. The findings will be shared with the Department of Health and Social Care. Are you interested in taking part? To express interest scan the QR code or click this link Or email us at fani.liapi@beds.ac.uk We’ll send you more information and answer any questions

Have you experienced both cardiovascular disease risk and mental health challenges?

We're keen to hear from you.

We're interviewing people to explore how integrated care can be improved.

Find out more on the image, or click the link below:

qualtricsxm58qqvslcm.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

@laurajmcgowan.bsky.social @ucl-cbc.bsky.social @newcastleuni.bsky.social @england.nhs.uk @nihr.bsky.social @nihrarcs.bsky.social @arc-west.bsky.social @arc-southlondon.bsky.social @arc-southlondon.bsky.social @nihrspcr.bsky.social @penarc.bsky.social @arcwessex.bsky.social

An image containing an advert to participate in an NIHR-funded study. We're conducting interviews are exploring how integrated care can be optimised for people with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and mild-to-moderate mental health concerns. Your professional experience will help us understand what works, what doesn’t, and how integrated care can be improved. Want to take part? Click the link below, or scan the QR code on the flyer, to express your interest. https://qualtricsxm58qqvslcm.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_aeOpNiCpC4RW8e2

Involved in commissioning or delivering integrated care?

We'd love to hear from you! We're conducting interviews are exploring how integrated care can be optimised for people with cardiovascular disease risk and mild-to-moderate mental health concerns.

Register interest: shorturl.at/HF0gb

Congrats to the authors Aikaterini Grimani, @viviantonop.bsky.social, Nick Meader, Chris Bonell, @susanmichie.bsky.social, Mike Kelly, and Ivo Vlaev.

We found that messages appealing to social values, especially those about protecting loved ones, were more effective in encouraging safer behaviours. These findings highlight the importance of clear and well-targeted communication which can help the public respond better in future outbreaks.

First paper of 2026! In our study, we examined whether public health messages can encourage people to adopt protective behaviours, such as wearing masks, washing hands, and keeping distance, to reduce the spread of respiratory infections like COVID-19 and influenza.

www.nature.com/articles/s43...

NIHR National Institute for Health and Care Research. Applied Research Collaborations. Top 25 stories of 2025.

Happy New Year from all the NIHR Applied Research Collaborations (ARCs) across the country!
🎉
Here are our 25 most popular newsletter stories from 2025:
mailchi.mp/nihr/nihr-ar...
🌟
What a variety!
Scroll to the end to see the top-most clicked-on stories
🖱️

NIHR National Institute for Health and Care Research. #ARCadvent Top ARC stories of the year. Day 21: Research highlights inequalities in health checks for people living with severe mental illness in the UK. Picture: Person receiving health care.

#ARCadvent day 2️⃣1️⃣:
Over half a million people in England live with severe mental illness (SMI).
Research led by @officialuom.bsky.social & funded by @arc-gm.bsky.social reveals ongoing inequalities in access to annual health checks (AHCs) for people living with SMI.
arc-gm.nihr.ac.uk/news/news/NE...

NIHR National Institute for Health and Care Research. #ARCadvent Top ARC stories of the year. Day 18: ARC course builds confidence in understanding health economics. Picture: Close-up of a person drawing a graph with a red pen.

#ARCadvent Day 1️⃣8️⃣:

The RaCEEs (Rapid Conversion of Economic Evaluations) training course, co-led by @valesschloss.bsky.social of
@arcnwc.bsky.social, is helping public contributors and professionals develop practical skills in health economic evaluations.

arc-nwc.nihr.ac.uk/news/the-rap...

Likely implications of this study may include national awareness campaigns to improve perceptions of nursing careers, enhanced financial support for degree students, and regulatory simplification for apprenticeship expansion.

Apprenticeships were considered to have more robust support systems, facilitating positive educational experiences and mitigating academic confidence issues, with peer support and camaraderie highly valued across both routes.

Financial stability and family commitments were considered key factors in educational choices, with the financial structure of apprenticeships perceived as preferable for mature students with children.

We wanted to understand the decision-making processes behind whether people would choose the traditional nursing degree route or the newer nursing apprenticeships.

Pathways to nursing: A qualitative exploration of the education and training decision-making of nursing students The World Health Organization estimates a shortage of 4.5 million nurses by 2030. In England, traditional nursing degrees cost ∼£9535/year, while appr…

⭐ New paper on pathways to nursing ⭐

Led by Dr @laurajmcgowan.bsky.social, we conducted qualitative interviews with prospective, current, and recent nursing students, as well as educational providers.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Implementation of physical health services for people living with SMI Showcasing national and regional best practice – How to deliver and implement physical health support services for people living with SMI

Registrations open for conference on 24th March: Implementation of physical health services for people living with SMI implementationofphysicalhealthservicesforsmi.eventbrite.co.uk

Open to health and third sector professionals, volunteers and members of the public.
@nihr-pru-bass.bsky.social

Are you working on behavioural science applied to population health, healthcare systems, or policy?

The Behavioural Science and Public Health Network (BSPHN) Conference 2026 is now open for abstract submissions — welcoming contributions from academics and practitioners.

This work is designed to inform evidence-based strategies that strengthen integrated care delivery and improve outcomes.

@viviantonop.bsky.social @amckinlay.bsky.social @laurajmcgowan.bsky.social @ejoliver.bsky.social @susanmichie.bsky.social @ucl-cbc.bsky.social @dphpc.bsky.social

The review will examine the factors that shape the commissioning and implementation of integrated care services for individuals with physical health risks and mental health concerns.

Factors that influence the commissioning and implementation of integrated care for adults at risk of cardiovascular disease and mild-to-moderate mental health concerns in the UK: a systematic review p... Background Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and mild-to-moderate mental health concerns (anxiety, depression) often co-occur and can worsen individual health outcomes, increase healthcare bur...

Interested in the commissioning and implementation of integrated care services?

Read our new systematic review protocol!

systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....

The policy briefing, explaining this research and likely policy implications, can be accessed here: behscipru.nihr.ac.uk/wp-content/u...