Core Staff Directory

Dr Brian Williams

Brian Williams is Director of the SDHI and Reader in Behavioural Science within the Division of Clinical & Population Sciences & Education, University of Dundee. Brian has also worked as an academic employed within the NHS in both Wales and Scotland.

He is a medical sociologist by background and has been involved in service evaluation within the NHS, with a particular emphasis on users' views. He has had responsibilities for co-ordinating and improving the quantity and quality of health services research both within North Wales and more recently in the Tayside region of Scotland and therefore has a central interest in capacity and capability building for health services research.

He continues to be involved in running and co-ordinating research training for health professionals within primary and secondary care, and has more recently trained members of the public for the Scottish Executive. Brian has specific expertise in qualitative research methods and is currently a member of the Health Services Research Committee at the Chief Scientist Office.

Brian's research interests focus around illness behaviour. This includes:

Visual Media in Health and Illness Behaviour:
Over the past two years he has laid the theoretical and empirical foundation for an extremely innovative programme of research examining physical and mental images in illness experience and behaviour. SDHI now have a multi-disciplinary and cross-faculty groups working in this area. Research includes how patients' mental images originate in doctor's communications and their impact on patient anxiety an, beliefs and behaviour, the development of theory-based still and moving images in health education/promotion interventions, and the development of new behavioural theory in relation to how images can embody and/or mediate beliefs. Current research and array of publications that are in submission or are imminent will provide the basis for a cross faculty bid for research programme funding or centre funding within the next two years.

Exploring and explaining illness behaviours:
Including examination of how people interpret symptoms, documenting patterns of illness beliefs, and how these relate to illness behaviours such as use of services, adherence to medications and implementation of more complex interventions delivered by allied health professionals and are highly dependent for effectiveness on domestic adherence.

Scottish Clinical Interactions project (SCIP):
In 2005 Brian lead a successful multi-disciplinary bid from the University of Dundee & University of St Andrews for feasibility funding under the Scottish Funding Council Strategic research Development grant scheme. The study explored the feasibility of creating a unique cohort and dataset of routinely, digitally recorded primary care consultations linked to an array of socio-demographic, service use, and clinical outcome variables. The database would allow researchers to identify the impact of a range of patient and general practitioner consultation behaviours on subsequent illness behaviours and clinical outcomes. The feasibility was extremely successful and lead to the development of appropriate recruitment procedures, data management agreements and recording software integrated into GP desktop management systems. A submission for infrastructure funding of between within coming months. This will provide the focus of for a unique programme of research of international standing.

See publications.

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