Dr Alice Tunks
About
Biography
Dr Alice Tunks joined the University of Surrey as a Lecturer in Health Psychology in September 2025.
Alice completed her BSc in Psychology at Cardiff University and an MRes in Psychology at the University of Manchester. She went on to complete her PhD at Brighton and Sussex Medical School in 2024, with her thesis examining access to evidence-based psychological therapies for perinatal obsessive–compulsive disorder.
Following this, Alice held two postdoctoral positions. At the University of Cambridge, she worked as a Research Associate within the Long-Term Conditions Group, contributing to the INSPIRE and ADAPT projects, which focused on improving the lives and care of people with long-term conditions, particularly autoimmune diseases. At the University of Sussex, she worked as a Research Fellow on the iBLISS pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial, delivering CBT-I–informed interventions aimed at improving adolescents’ sleep.
University roles and responsibilities
- University of Surrey Ethics Committee
My qualifications
ResearchResearch interests
My research interests broadly centre on improving access to mental health care. I explore how individuals engage with services and how support can be designed and delivered more effectively. I have a particular interest in access to mental health care during the perinatal period, with a focus on understanding barriers, facilitators, and the ways services can be adapted to better meet the needs of parents.
Research interests
My research interests broadly centre on improving access to mental health care. I explore how individuals engage with services and how support can be designed and delivered more effectively. I have a particular interest in access to mental health care during the perinatal period, with a focus on understanding barriers, facilitators, and the ways services can be adapted to better meet the needs of parents.
Teaching
Health Psychology (PSY3037) - Module Convenor
General Psychology (PSY3095)
Clinical Psychology and Mental Health (PSY3127)
Qualitative Research Methods (PSYD029)
Psychological Aspects of Healthcare (PSYM006)
Publications
Highlights
Tunks, A., Berry, C., Strauss, C., Nyikavaranda, P., & Ford, E. (2023). Patients' perspectives of barriers and facilitators to accessing support through primary care for common mental health problems in England: A systematic review.
Nyikavaranda, P., Pantelic, M., Jones, C. J., Paudyal, P., Tunks, A., & Llewellyn, C. D. (2023). Barriers and facilitators to seeking and accessing mental health support in primary care and the community among female migrants in Europe: a “feminisms” systematic review. International journal for equity in health, 22(1), 196.
Lester, K. J., McDonald, B., Tunks, A., & Michelson, D. (2024). Intervention for school anxiety and absenteeism in children (ISAAC): Mixed-Method feasibility study of a Coach-Assisted, Parent-Focused online program. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 1-15.
Ghaffar, D., Berry, C., Tunks, A., Hazell, C. M., & Niven, J. E. (2025). A thematic analytic account of university support services' acceptability for postgraduate researchers experiencing mental health problems. Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 25(2), e12834.