Professor Dunnett’s project, The role of the medical marketplace in creating and sustaining hope in people living with cancer, is a collaboration with Professor Kathy Hamilton of the University of Strathclyde. The project will examine how commercial health services influence hopefulness and overall wellbeing.
Working closely with the US-based cancer charity, the International Myeloma Foundation, the study will employ a novel arts-based approach to visually map the resources people living with the cancer, Multiple Myeloma, use to maintain hope. Chronic forms of cancer, such as Multiple Myeloma, move in and out of remission, and patients go through periods of treatment and recovery. Understanding how people sustain hope is therefore crucial, not least as hope has been linked to survival and quality of life.
I am honoured to receive this RSE grant. This funding will allow us to deepen our understanding of how commercial health-care offerings affect ability to feel hope in people with cancer, and to develop insights that can inform both policy and practice.Professor Susan Dunnett, Personal Chair of Consumer Culture and Society
The Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland’s National Academy, was established in 1783 to advance learning and knowledge that is useful to society. Drawing on the expertise of over 1,800 Fellows, the RSE supports research, policy, education and public engagement across disciplines.
RSE Research Awards support leading research that benefits Scotland’s cultural, economic and social wellbeing. RSE Small Research Grants are designed to encourage high-quality research and academic innovation, and, where possible, to integrate with the overall programme of awards. This means that successful applications may lead to future bids for RSE Research Collaboration Grants or serve as preliminary investigations for other larger research awards. The Business School congratulates Professor Dunnett and all University recipients on this recognition and looks forward to the contribution this research will make to patient care and the understanding of consumer cultures in health contexts.
Read the complete list of awardees
Susan Dunnett is our Personal Chair of Consumer Culture and Society.