Bernice Pescosolido

Bernice Pescosolido is a distinguished professor of sociology and director of the Indiana Consortium for Mental Health Services Research. Her research and teaching focus on social issues in health, illness and healing.

Pescosolido’s work addresses how social networks connect individuals to their communities and to institutional structures, providing the “wires” through which people’s attitudes and actions are influenced. It encompasses three basic areas: health care services, stigma and suicide research. She also developed the Network-Episode Model, which focuses on how individuals come to recognize and respond to the onset of health problems and use health care services.

Areas of Expertise

Medical sociology, social networks, mental health/illness, suicide.