معرفی
Andrea Wigfield is Professor and Director of the Centre for Loneliness Studies at the University of Sheffield, with extensive leadership experience including Director of the Policy Evaluation Group (2002-2011), Co-Director of CIRCLE (2011-2016), and Director of Care-Connect (2014-2017). Her career centers on interdisciplinary research bridging academia, public policy, and community practice to address loneliness through evidence-based interventions.
Her research examines loneliness across the life-course with particular focus on marginalized populations including older men, young women in global contexts, and BAME communities. Key methodologies emphasize co-production with 'experts by experience' and policy-driven impact. Major projects include:
- Loneliness among young women in India, Indonesia and Mexico (Unilever, 2021-2022)
- Understanding barriers for BAME communities accessing loneliness services (British Red Cross, 2018-19)
- Reducing loneliness through built environment design (Business Boost, 2018)
- Hen Happy: Social interaction in care homes through hen keeping (2018)
Wigfield's publication record (50+ books/chapters/articles) reveals evolving focus from foundational social isolation metrics (2018) to pandemic impacts (2024), consistently integrating gerontology, public health, and social policy perspectives through mixed-methods approaches.
Her policy influence is recognized through the Age UK Impact Fellowship and active roles in national coalitions:
- Age UK Impact Fellow
- Member of Connection Coalition
- Core Partnership, Leeds Older People’s Forum
Securing nearly £3 million across 90+ externally funded projects, she has evaluated major initiatives for Welsh Government, British Red Cross, and Unilever while developing practical tools like the Co-production Toolkit. Her supervision of PhD students focuses on translating research into community impact.
Leading the Centre for Loneliness Studies, she coordinates interdisciplinary teams developing evidence-based frameworks for loneliness reduction including the 2024 publication 'Loneliness for Dummies', emphasizing scalable solutions for policymakers and practitioners globally.
