CMHC promotes research on mental health and poverty

Annie Harper, PhD, has spent the past several years exploring the relationship between financial stress and mental health. After earning her PhD in Anthropology from Yale 2010, Harper was recruited by the CMHC Foundation to interview clients about their financial situations. From there, she went on to win a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to conduct a study about different types of financial interventions with people living in poverty and the subseqent mental health outcomes. Harper notes that, “Almost everyone in our first study was in debt. Most were very stressed about it. We know that debt has a strong negative impact on mental health.” Read more about Harper’s study and results here.