Dr Bruno De Oliveira
Lecturer in Psychology
About
Bruno’s research career is focused on participatory and creative methods, such as photo-elicitation, at the boundaries of community and social psychology. His research has led him to contribute to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Poverty in the UK.
Bruno researches institutional practices and lived-in experiences in the context of marginalisation regarding social economics of mental distress, particularly homeless and welfare claimants. He takes a critical realist approach and uses mixed methodologies, especially creative and visual methods. He is particularly interested in developing interdisciplinary research. The critical community psychology approach informs his work.
Professional
FRSA, FHEA, Certificate of achievement from Department for Education from research with vulnerable people and Highly Commended Research Paper by Emerald Literati Awards.
Key Publications and Nominations
- De Oliveira, B. (Forthcoming). Critical Community Psychology: the basics. Routledge. (Book)
- Chapter book on Community Health Psychology: An Introductory Approach to Critical Public Health (2026)
- De Oliveira, B. (Forthcoming). The Community Psychology of Loneliness. Bloomsbury. (Book)
- De Oliveira B (2026), The philosophical foundations of participatory action research: pragmatism, critical theory, constructivism, feminist epistemology and participatory democracy. Qualitative Research Journal, Vol. 26 No. 1 pp. 102–116, doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/QRJ-07-2024-0151
- De Oliveira, B. (2026, March 9). Individual grit won’t make men beautiful. The Guardian.
- Dolske, G., & Salo, R. (Hosts). (2025, November 30). The problem with self-help: Critical psychology, philosophy, and the real causes of distress [Audio podcast episode]. In Good Is In The Details. GIID. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-problem-with-self-help-critical-psychology/id1466729675?i=1000738935944
- De Oliveira, B. (2025). Austerity. Taylor & Francis. (Book)
- De Oliveira, B. (2025) Self-Help Industry, The: Is the Self-Help Industry Really Helping or Are We Being Misled? John Hunt Publishing. (Book)
- Community Psychology in Action: Striving towards Social Justice and Wellbeing in Challenging Times (2025) Co-authored chapter in the forthcoming volume
- De Oliveira, B. (2025, September 8–10). Social Psychology Section Annual Conference: Exploring Participatory Action Research as a Research Approach—Advantages, Limitations, and Critiques. Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford.
- De Oliveira, B. (2025), The psychological toll of austerity. The Psychologist.
- De Oliveira, B. (2025), ‘I’m not a stranger – neither are millions of others like me’. The Psychologist.
- De Oliveira, B. (2025), Collaboration key to promoting progressive social change. The Psychologist.
- De Oliveira, B. (2025) Brief Lives, Paulo Freire (1921–1997) Philosophy Now. Vol.167, pp.46-47.
- De Oliveira, B. (2024), Participatory Action Research – breathing life into Psychology The Psychologist.
- De Oliveira, B. (2024), Is the totalitarianism of happiness really making us happier? The Psychologist.
- Research Programme for Social Care RPSC Competition 2 Stage: Investigating the lived experiences of people experiencing homelessness when accessing mental health social care services in London: A Participatory Action Research approach
- De Oliveira, B. (2023), Participatory action research as a research approach: advantages, limitations and criticisms, Qualitative Research Journal, Vol.23 No. 3, pp. 287-297. https://doi.org/10.1108/QRJ-08-2022-0101.
- De Oliveira, B. (2023), “A thematic analysis of homelessness practitioners’ perception of the impacts of welfare reforms in the UK: “Hard to maintain my own mental equilibrium””, Housing, Care and Support, Vol. 26 No. 3/4, pp. 65-83. https://doi.org/10.1108/HCS-10-2022-0027
- De Oliveira, B. (2023, July 03–06). Beyond Unframed Lives: Reflecting on Participatory Action Research to Challenge Homelessness [Conference presentation abstract]. 18th European Congress of Psychology, Psychology: Uniting communities for a sustainable world. Brighton, UK.
- De Oliveira, B. (2023), Is the totalitarianism of happiness really making us happier? The Psychologist.
- B De Oliveira, B. (2022a) A photo elicitation exploration on formally homeless people experiences with Universal Credit: System error and the government don’t care’. Journal of Community Psychology.
- De Oliveira (2022b) Cost of living crisis: what research says about the potential psychological impact, The Conversation.
- De Oliveira, B. (2022c), Shedding light on homelessness. The Psychologist, Vol.35, pp.6.
- De Oliveira, B. (2022d), ‘Visible subalternism’ and Ukraine. The Psychologist.
- De Oliveira, B. British Medical Journal 2021; 375: n2447.
- De Oliveira, B. British Medical Journal 2020; 369: m1557.
- De Oliveira, B. (2020b), Unframed lives. The Psychologist, Vol.33, pp.68-69.
- De Oliveira, B. (2020a) We must act to decolonise Psychology in Standing Against Racism. The Psychologist, Vol.33 (pp.2-5).
- Coêlho, V. M. D. S., Santos, W. J. D., Santos, G. B., Ceballos, A. G. D. C. D., & de Oliveira, B. (2019). Common mental disorders and risk behaviours in motorcyclists’ victims of traffic-accidents. Revista Portuguesa de Enfermagem de Saúde Mental, (22), 27-34
- De Oliveira, B. (2018) On the news today: challenging homelessness through participatory action research, HOUSING, CARE AND SUPPORT, Vol. 21(1) pp. 13-25.
- De Oliveira, B. (2017) Enclosures, beneficence and fluid spaces – the practice of informal mental distress work: In conversation with Dr Carl Walker. Psychology of Women Section Review, Vol. 19(1), Spring
- YEIP (2017) YOUNG, MARGINALISED BUT NOT RADICALISED A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF POSITIVE APPROACHES TO YOUTH RADICALISATION, IARS Publications.
- De Oliveira, B. (2016) Brazil’s Democracy & Return to the Senzala, Turning the Tide; Culver City Vol. 28, Iss.7, 3-6.
- De Oliveira, B. (2019). What if art and research could be used as a form of community dialogue, as a space for people with lived experience of homelessness to empower themselves? A reflection on unframed lives at the Brighton Fringe, UK. The Community Psychologist, 52(3), 59–61.
PhD
Bruno’s research interests lie in social inequality and mental distress, participatory and critical research methods, critical community psychology, multi-stakeholder capacity-building action research in communities, homelessness and action research, structural suffering, and Race and Racism.
Research Output
Articles
Naderi, A., de Oliviera, E. P., Ziegenfuss, T. N. and Willems, M. E. T.et al (2016) Timing, optimal dose and intake duration of dietary supplements with evidence-based uses in sports nutrition. Journal of Exercise Nutrition & Biochemistry, 20 (4). pp. 1-12. ISSN 2233-6842 10.20463/jenb.2016.0031