Postdoctoral Research Associate in , Welfare & Mental Health

Organisation/Company KINGS COLLEGE LONDON Research Field Economics Political sciences Sociology Ethics in social sciences Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Established Researcher (R3) Final date to receive applications 2 Feb 2026 - 00:00 (UTC) Country United Kingdom Type of Contract Other Job Status Full-time Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

The post is based in the Centre for Society and Mental Health, a cross‑Faculty initiative between the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy (SSPP) and the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN). The centre aims to better understand the complex interrelationships between society and mental health, with a commitment to:

• Ensure that the impact of social context is central to how we understand mental health;
• Work in partnership with affected communities.

This is an opportunity to do important research on mental health, work and the benefits system, which both contributes to public/policy debates, and provides high‑quality contributions to academic debates.

You will work closely with Prof. Ben Geiger and Prof. Karen Glaser as part of the Centre’s ‘Work, Welfare Reform and Mental Health’ programme. This involves collaborating closely with an interdisciplinary team of researchers as well as the Centre’s academic and community partners, as part of the Centre’s wider ethos of coproduction.

Using your experience in quantitative data analysis, you will examine the links between mental distress and work, care and welfare. You will take forward some selected pre‑existing projects (e.g. on the relationship between mental distress and the evolving nature of work), can choose to contribute to other existing projects (e.g. the Welfare Experiences project), and take forward new ideas of your own that relates to these topics.

There is an expectation that the post holder will develop independent research (including fellowship applications), with the support of Ben, Karen and the wider Centre.

The post holder will commit 0.2 FTE of their time to the delivery of teaching in their faculty. This will be agreed with your line manager and may include teaching on a module and supervising dissertations and student projects.

This is a full time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until April 2028 in first instance, view to extending subject to funding.

We are asking candidates to demonstrate their experience on the following criteria:

• PhD, or in the final stages of obtaining a PhD, in a relevant area of social science (e.g., social policy, economics, demography, sociology, social statistics, social epidemiology).
• Advanced knowledge of contemporary policy and research debates on welfare policy and/or employment
• Knowledge of advanced statistical approaches and data management best practice for longitudinal data analysis
• Experience in analysing quantitative data using advanced statistical, econometric or policy evaluation methods

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

• PhD, or in the final stages of obtaining a PhD, in a relevant area of social science (e.g., social policy, economics, demography, sociology, social statistics, social epidemiology).
• Advanced knowledge of contemporary policy and research debates on welfare policy and/or employment
• Knowledge of advanced statistical approaches and data management best practice for longitudinal data analysis
• Experience in analysing quantitative data using advanced statistical, econometric or policy evaluation methods
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with research teams and people with lived experience, including good interpersonal skills to develop and maintain effective working relationships.
• Demonstrated organisational and time management skills, to be able to work independently and to deadlines
• Effective communication skills, including experience of presenting / disseminating research findings
• Experience of preparing and…