Rate My Professor Maddy Arden

Professor Maddy Arden, BSc, PhD, CPsychol, SFHEA, AFBPsS, FAcSS, is Professor of Health Psychology and Behavioural Science in the School of Psychology within the Faculty of Health and Education at Manchester Metropolitan University. She is a leading behavioural scientist, health psychologist, and chartered psychologist renowned for her expertise in behaviour change and maintenance. Arden develops and evaluates evidence-based interventions to promote behaviour change and adherence across diverse domains, including physical health, active travel, engagement in family support services, and parenting programmes, with the goal of enhancing health, well-being, and social justice. Her research champions the application of behaviour change models beyond laboratory settings, with particular focus on the role of habits in sustaining behaviours and real-world behavioural science applications. She leads the Changing Behaviour Health and Well-being Research Group at the university.

Arden's career includes serving as Co-editor in Chief of the British Journal of Health Psychology from 2018 to 2022 and acting as an expert witness to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on adherence to Test, Trace, and Isolate in May 2025. In October 2025, she secured a £1.5 million NIHR Public Health Research grant to improve access to parent programmes in deprived areas. Her influential publications include 'An analysis of adherence to behaviours associated with the Test, Trace and Isolate (TTI) system' (2025, report), 'Changing practice in cystic fibrosis: Implementing objective medication adherence data at every consultation' (2025, Learning Health Systems), 'Developing habit-based health behaviour change interventions: twenty-one questions to guide future research' (2023, Psychology and Health), and 'Self-management intervention to reduce pulmonary exacerbations by supporting treatment adherence in adults with cystic fibrosis' (2022, Thorax). These works, published in high-impact journals, demonstrate her contributions to medication adherence, public health behaviours during pandemics, and habit formation in long-term conditions. Her research has practical implications for clinical practice, policy, and public health interventions.