Bridget Bradley

Bridget Bradley serves as Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of St Andrews within the School of Philosophical, Anthropological and Film Studies and Department of Social Anthropology, with additional affiliation to the Centre for Energy Ethics.

Her academic credentials include:

• PhD in Biosocial Journeys: Care and Community in Experiences of Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours (University of Edinburgh, 2019)
• MSc in Anthropology of Health and Illness (University of Edinburgh, 2012)
• BA in Social Anthropology (University of Manchester, 2011)

Bradley's research spans health and illness, disability, kinship, bodily practices, gender intersectionality, hair/beauty cultures, and climate activism. As an applied anthropologist, she employs auto-ethnography and virtual ethnography while actively advocating for body-focused repetitive behavior (BFRB) communities through the charity BFRB U&I she co-founded.

Her 2018-2024 publications reveal consistent focus on BFRBs and emerging eco-anxiety research, demonstrating methodological innovation in medical anthropology through multi-sited ethnography across UK and US contexts.

She received dual 1416 Teaching Awards in April 2025, including recognition for Inclusivity.

• Supervises PhD candidates Alexis Evans and Louisa Wladarsch
• Secured Scottish Funding Council grant for 'Eco Worrier, Eco Warrior' project (2020-2021)
• Co-founded BFRB U&I charity for UK/Ireland support systems

Bradley leads the Centre for Energy Ethics initiatives and organized the 2024 Oxford BFRB Conference, extending her research impact through media engagement including the 2024 feature on hair-pulling disorders.