Cohort: ESOL 40

Topic of the thesis: Social Networks and Preventive Health Care: A Comparative Study of the Impact of Social Networks on Preventive Healthcare Engagement across Roma and non-Roma Communities in Milan

Abstract: My research project focuses on the interrelations between two foci: hidden/marginal populations and the social determinants of health. Specifically, the project has three goals:

1. Understanding and unfolding the composition and structure of networks of social relationships influencing engagement in preventive healthcare within Roma communities and non-Roma populations.

2. Identifying the differences in the characteristics and structures of social networks between Roma and non-Roma communities in the domain of preventive health care.

3. Investigating how the inequalities in the characteristics and structures of social networks between Roma and non-Roma communities contribute to unequal distributions of beliefs, behaviours, and outcomes in engaging with preventive healthcare.

Roma communities represent one of the most marginalized and stigmatized ethnic groups in the Western world. In Europe, where they constitute the largest ethnic minority, these communities have historically faced entrenched structural injustices. A substantial body of research highlights enduring discrimination against Roma, including unemployment, inadequate access to basic services, and cultural oppression. The COVID-19 pandemic, during which discrimination and racism directed at Roma has even increased, has also highlighted the low uptake of preventive healthcare, such as vaccination, among these communities. This research project aims to explore the composition and structure of social networks influencing engagement in preventive healthcare within Roma communities in Milan, compared to non-Roma populations and how their differences contribute to unequal distributions of beliefs, behaviours, and outcomes in engaging with preventive healthcare. Through a multidisciplinary approach integrating qualitative and quantitative methods, including literature reviews, participant observation, and personal network analysis, this research project seeks to provide insights into how social networks impact preventive health behaviours and contribute to health disparities.

Research interests: Social networks and micro-interaction, Socio-economic inequalities, Experiments, quasi-experiments and agent-based simulations, Marginal/Hidden populations, Migration, Social determinants of health

Graduated from: The University of Sheffield (BA degree); University of Oxford (MPhil degree)

Degrees obtained: Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Sociology; Master of Philosophy in Development Studies

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