Loneliness, social isolation and mental health in farming communities: An analysis of social and cultural factors
Loneliness and Social Isolation in Mental Health Network (funded by UKRI)
Profile
Dr Rebecca Wheeler
Senior Research Fellow
3170
01392 723170
Lazenby House 1.03
Rebecca Wheeler is a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Rural Policy Research (CRPR). Her current research interests include:
- Farmer attitudes, behaviour and decision-making in relation to the environment, including agri-environment schemes, landscape-scale management and adaptation to climate change.
- Health and wellbeing in the agricultural community
- Public engagement with farming and nature; farmer-community relationships
- Social and cultural geographies of place and landscape, including heritage, temporality and the oral histories of everyday landscapes
Research group links
Research interests
My research covers a range of issues within the broad area of rural social science. My current interests include:
- Farmer attitudes, behaviour and decision-making in relation to the environment, including agri-environment schemes, landscape-scale management and adaptation to climate change.
- Health and wellbeing in the agricultural community
- Public engagement with farming and nature; farmer-community relationships
- Social and cultural geographies of place and landscape, including heritage, temporality and the oral histories of everyday landscapes
Since joining the CRPR, I have been involved in a number of large research projects, including: Defra's Sustainable Intensification Research Platform (SIP) (which investigated the potential for intensifying agricultural land management to produce more food whilst also improving environmental management); an evaluation of the Higher Level Stewardship Scheme for Natural England; and the Hampshire Avon Demonstration Test Catchment project (looking at farmer attitudes and practices around diffuse water pollution.
Research supervision
I am currently supervising the following PhD researchers:
Hannah Mortimer: Feeding beef cattle: Regenerative practices, perceptions and performances of the 'good farmer' in Devon, England.
Skylar Collins: Understanding risk, safety and mental health challenges in UK small-scale fisheries
Other information
Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Member of the Royal Geographical Society (RGS-IBG)
Member of the European Society for Rural Sociology (ESRS)
Biography
I have a broad background in rural geography and environmental sustainability and completed my PhD, titled 'Experiences of Place and Change in Rural Landscapes: Three English case studies', in May 2015 (Plymouth University). This explored rural residents' experiences of, and attitudes towards, place-based changes - and the implications of these for processes of identity and place attachment - with a particular focus on existing wind farms.
Prior to my postgraduate studies, I worked as Climate SouthWest Project Officer for the Environment Agency, where I was involved in regional efforts to raise awareness of the impacts of climate change and encourage adaptation action. I also hold an MSc in Sustainable Environmental Management (Plymouth University) and a BSocSci in Social Anthropology (University of Manchester).