Enabling research for better mental health

Six stories of how supporters of Oxford are helping to make a difference to people’s lives by funding research into mental health.

Mental health support can be a lifeline for those affected by issues such as loneliness and anxiety © Oxford University Images / Wytham Woods

An immense amount of scientific research takes place at Oxford University to support better mental health. This area has increasingly come under the spotlight as a result of the toll of the pandemic, prompting new and urgent avenues of enquiry: how to tackle the profound impact of recent events on current and future global mental health; how to mitigate the longstanding consequences of children’s emotional health difficulties; and how to improve access to treatment through virtual reality technology.

While the disconnect from our social, family and work lives has brought into stark relief issues around isolation, confinement, uncertainty, anxiety and stress, these problems can, in fact, affect all of us at any given time in our lives.

A number of supporters of the University have contributed significantly to projects relating to mental wellbeing over the last few years. We revisit some of these stories here.

Hiking through the countryside courtesy of Under the Sky Events

1. The Welland Trust, which is dedicated to addressing the needs of care-experienced people, created a DPhil studentship at Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute in 2020 that focuses on the effects of nature and the outdoors on the mental wellbeing of people — care leavers in particular — who have experienced a traumatic childhood. Working with Under the Sky Events, the trust has seen how lives can be transformed through free outdoor opportunities such as trekking, camping, kayaking, rock climbing, bushcraft, painting and photography.

2. The Alex Timpson Trust is the official company charity of the Timpson Group and its main aim is to help schools better respond to the emotional needs of looked after (fostered and adopted) children. The trust donated £750,000 in 2017 to fund a research programme at the Rees Centre, which is based in the University of Oxford’s Department for Education and is renowned for the impact that its findings have in helping vulnerable children and young people. The Alex Timpson Attachment and Trauma Awareness in Schools Programme is working with 300 schools across 25 local authorities in England. The programme aims to build a new evidence base on how ‘whole school’ approaches to attachment and trauma issues can help to address the emotional, mental health and wellbeing needs of all young people.

3. The Palix Foundation has supported a cross-disciplinary project aimed at sharing scientific knowledge about early brain development and its effect on mental health and addiction, with the vision of improving outcomes for children, their families and future generations. The Oxford Brain Story has different types of resources to help professionals understand the science of how experiences shape our brains and the long-term implications for mental and physical health.

‘We are deeply appreciative to the Palix Foundation for this generous gift, which will support our endeavours to improve outcomes for children and families.’

— Sir John Bell, Regius Professor of Medicine at the University of Oxford

4. In 2020 the Sir John Ritblat Family Foundation enabled the creation of a new Professorship in Mindfulness and Psychological Science, with a view to transforming our understanding of the link between mind and body. The Oxford Mindfulness Centre, which has collaborated closely with policy-makers on its research agenda, is currently undertaking major studies into the promise of mindfulness in education, the workplace and criminal justice systems.

5. Concern about the effects of the pandemic on the mental wellbeing of children prompted the Duke of Westminster to donate £1 million through the Westminster Foundation towards the University’s COVID-19 mental health research programmes, supporting work taking place in the Department of Psychiatry. The Westminster Foundation provides long-term support to vulnerable young people and families.

Many children have been adversely affected by the pandemic. Photo credit: Shutterstock

6. The Huo Family Foundation, a charitable organisation which supports the arts and education, is currently funding a three-year research programme at Oxford. The programme aims to scientifically investigate widely held assumptions that the overall mental health of young people is undergoing a period of decline, possibly driven by digital technologies. Professor Andrew Przybylski, Director of Research at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII), and his team are addressing some of the big issues facing parents, carers and childcare professionals alike in the ongoing debate surrounding children’s wellbeing and the link between their digital lives and their mental health — sometimes with unexpected results.

‘The study suggests that experiences of competence and social connection with others through play may contribute to people’s well-being. Indeed, those who derived enjoyment from playing were more likely to report experiencing positive well-being.’

— Professor Andrew Przybylski

Oxford continues to conduct world-class research, to develop the clinicians and researchers of the future, and to improve the mental health of people globally through its work. We thank all supporters of Oxford’s research in this important field.