Heather E. Bullock | |
---|---|
Occupation(s) | Professor, Department of Psychology |
Awards | American Psychological Association Committee on Socioeconomic Status Leadership Award (2013) |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | Ph.D., University of Rhode Island B.A., Allegheny College |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of California,Santa Cruz |
Heather E. Bullock is an American social psychologist. She is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Center for Economic Justice and Action (formerly the Blum Center on Poverty,Social Enterprise,and Participatory Governance) at the University of California,Santa Cruz. [1] [2] Bullock is known for her research on people's beliefs about economic disparities and the consequences of stereotypical beliefs about the poor on public policy. [3] This includes work examining attributions about poverty made by news media,and how such attributions influence public support of welfare policies. [4]
Bullock received her B.A. from Allegheny College in Meadville,Pennsylvania. She went to graduate school at the University of Rhode Island where she obtained her Ph.D. in psychology in 1995 under the supervision of Bernice Lott. [5] [6] Bullock's dissertation examined attributions for poverty by asking middle-class people and welfare recipients to explain poverty. [7] Bullock has served as editor of the journal Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy . [8] She was awarded the Iva Patterson Gilmore Prize in Psychology from Allegheny College in 1988. [9]
Bullock participated in the APA Task Force on Socioeconomic Status in 2006 [10] and served as the first Chair of the American Psychological Association (APA) Committee on Socioeconomic Status from 2007 to 2009. [11] The Committee honored Bullock with its Distinguished Psychologist Leadership Award in 2013. [12]
With Bernice Lott,Bullock co-authored the book Psychology and Economic Injustice:Personal,Professional,and Political Intersections, [13] [14] which received the Distinguished Publication Award from the Association for Women in Psychology, [15] and recognition from the American Library Association. [16] Bullock is also author of Women and Poverty:Psychology,Public Policy,and Social Justice. [17] [18] In 2018,Bullock was appointed to serve on the APA Working Group on Deep Poverty,which aims to use psychological science to "challenge prejudicial attitudes and beliefs,inform policy and improve practice and programming... [ ] and move beyond current understandings of causes and consequences of poverty." [19]
In Intersections of Ethnicity and Social Class in Provider Advice Regarding Reproductive Health, Bullock and her colleagues Roberta Downing,and Thomas A. LaVeist explored whether low income women experience stigma related to child bearing. They assessed whether low income women perceived their healthcare providers as advising them to limit the number of future children. They found that,in comparison to middle class white women,low income women of color and low income Latinas were at increased odds of being discouraged from having children. The findings demonstrate how ethnicity and social class may influence women's interactions with reproductive health care providers. [20]
In Media Images of the Poor, Bullock and her colleagues Karen Fraser Wyche,and Wendy R. Williams examined stereotypical images of the poor presented in mainstream media. They assessed the prevalence of such imagery as well as classist,racist and sexist imagery,and were particularly interested in whether media depictions of the poor changed after welfare reform in 1999. They determined that most articles expressed the obstacles welfare recipients and the poor faced with sympathy. They felt the media did not do a good enough job conceptualizing poverty,exploring its causes,and seeking solutions. Overall they felt the media presented economic inequality and poverty superficially and felt it was the media's responsibility to challenge beliefs about poverty and generate a movement towards welfare and social class reform. [21]
Social psychiatry is a branch of psychiatry that studies how the social environment impacts mental health and mental illness. It applies a cultural and societal lens on mental health by focusing on mental illness prevention,community-based care,mental health policy,and societal impact of mental health. It is closely related to cultural psychiatry and community psychiatry.
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) is a United States federal law passed by the 104th United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. The bill implemented major changes to U.S. social welfare policy,replacing the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program.
"Welfare queen" is a derogatory term used in the United States to describe individuals who are perceived to misuse or abuse the welfare system,often through fraudulent means,child endangerment,or manipulation. The media's coverage of welfare fraud began in the early 1960s and was featured in general-interest publications such as Reader's Digest. The term gained widespread recognition following media reporting in 1974 regarding the case of Linda Taylor. It was further popularized by Ronald Reagan during Reagan's 1976 presidential campaign when he frequently embellished Taylor's story in his speeches.
In the United States,poverty has both social and political implications. In 2020,there were 37.9 million people in poverty. Some of the many causes include income,inequality,inflation,unemployment,debt traps and poor education. The majority of adults living in poverty are employed and have at least a high school education. Although the US is a relatively wealthy country by international standards,it has a persistently high poverty rate compared to other developed countries due in part to a less generous welfare system.
The effects of social welfare on poverty have been the subject of various studies.
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Kay Deaux is an American social psychologist known for her pioneering research on immigration and feminist identity. Deaux is Distinguished Professor Emerita at the Department of Psychology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY). According to Brenda Major,Deaux's work centers on the question of how social categories affect one's psychological makeup,social behavior,and life outcomes,while emphasizing the subjectivity of people's identities and experiences and the larger social context.
Gerodiversity is the multicultural approach to issues of aging. This approach provides a theoretical foundation for the medical and psychological treatment of older adults within an ecological context that includes their cultural identity and heritage,social environment,community,family system,and significant relationships. Gerodiversity encompasses a social justice framework,which considers the social and historical dynamics of privilege and inequality. In addition to issues of aging,gerodiversity includes race,ethnicity,language,gender identity,socioeconomic status,physical ability or disability,sexual orientation,level of education,country of origin,location of residence,and religion or spirituality.
Nancy Elinor Adler was an American health psychologist. She was the Lisa and John Pritzker Professor of Medical Psychology at the University of California,San Francisco (UCSF),and director of UCSF's Center for Health and Community Sciences. Adler was known for her research on health behaviors,health disparities,and social determinants of health.
Irene Hanson Frieze is a personality psychologist and pioneering figure in the field of women's studies. She is known for her research on intimate partner violence in marriage and dating relationships,and for cross-cultural studies of attitudes about work and gender roles. Frieze is Professor Emerita of Psychology and Women's Studies at the University of Pittsburgh.
Michelle Melody Fine is a distinguished professor at the City University of New York and has her training in Social and Personality Psychology,Environmental Psychology,American Studies,and Urban Education. Her research includes the topics of social injustice and resistance and urban education. Fine is also an author and has written several works,one of her most known being Muslim American Youth (2008).
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Martha Tamara Shuch Mednick was a feminist psychologist known for her work on women,gender,race and social class. She was a professor of psychology at Howard University from 1968 until her retirement in 1995.
Bernice Lott was an American social psychologist known for her work on feminist psychology,gender,poverty,social class,and prejudice and discrimination. She was Professor Emerita of Psychology and Woman's Studies at the University of Rhode Island and was a former Dean of its University College.
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