Wellbeing and the Arts

The Wellbeing and the Arts strand draws together researchers from various disciplines (including art, design, photography, literature and history) who are interested in the contribution creative subjects can make to the understanding and promotion of health, wellbeing and inclusion. It is led by Professor Louise Moody.

Theme overview

The Wellbeing and the Arts theme takes a multi-disciplinary approach to addressing well-being. We consider wellbeing in the broadest sense including for example mental, physical, social, cultural, environmental elements. We employ research and creative practice to explore, understand, communicate and promote wellbeing and seek to develop new interventions and solutions that address the needs of diverse users and stakeholders.

Our research provides critical approaches to societal norms and seeks to enhance wellbeing through theory and practice. The theme incorporates research focusing on the intersections of gender, age, sexuality, race and the challenges of living with a health condition and includes:

• Exploration and representation of individual and collective experiences to increase understanding, empathy and improve public awareness
• Developing and enhancing health and well-being communication and information promotion
• The design and evaluation of products, experiences, services, systems and spaces to improve wellbeing and inclusion
• Creative practice as an individual or community intervention that can support wellbeing
• Equal integration of experiences into the design of innovative products and services

Our researchers have expertise in qualitative and creative approaches to data collection and analysis and evaluation. We specialise in co-creation, participatory and collaborative approaches and employ these for example through design, linguistics, photography and serious games development.

Example projects

Exploring ‘Disfluency Pride’ across Contexts and Communities

This project is looking at ways to creatively explore marginalised communication styles with communicators who may be considered dysfluent by dominant Western societal norms.

Needs Assessment Plan for Self Management of Adult ADHD

The aim of this project is to understand the experiences, struggles and strengths of self-identifying and late-diagnosis adults with ADHD in the UK, to inform considerations and future policies in which treatment and support is developed.

Creative Approaches to Death and Grief

Grief is a universal human experience, and a natural response to the loss of a loved one. However, it can have long-lasting and significant effects on wellbeing, and those experiencing it may benefit from support to help them to navigate the challenges that it entails.

GILL

The GILL project seeks to drive impact and change by enhancing the professional development of women and minorities, increasing the integration of gender and diversity into product design and technologies and encouraging gendered educational practices.

Maturolife

Maturolife brings experts together to develop products that embed innovative smart textiles in order to support healthy ageing and independent living.

Uniform and perceived employee happiness

This project sought to understand the employee perspective on the impact uniform has on their happiness and productivity in their role.

SHAPES

The SHAPES project has been funded for three years to design, manufacture and trial a self, or carer-managed intervention that could be deployed early after stroke to treat post-stroke elbow spasticity.

Digital self-management technology

The project objectives are to identify individual enablers and barriers to the use of digital technology for the self-management of long-term conditions by older adults.

Designing communication for Newborn Screening

In 2008/9 our research aimed to inform a proposed UK pilot of an expanded newborn screening service.

AccessCULT

AccessCULT seeks to improve the accessibility of cultural heritage across Europe through the exchange of good practice.

SUITS

The SUITS project was a four-year research and innovation action to increase the capacity building of Local Authorities and transport stakeholders and to transfer learning to smaller sized cities, making them more effective and resilient to change in the judicious implementation of sustainable transport measures.