Madeline Foley is interested in bringing an anthropological approach to problems in the field of public health, particularly in understanding the social dimensions of addiction. She conducts research with Professor Catherine Bolten in the Department of Anthropology. Professor Bolten’s present work examines Tramadol abuse in Sierra Leone as a manifestation of structural poverty and food insecurity.
Foley began studying the American opioid epidemic in 2017 and has co-authored an article on the associations between rates of depression and opioid overdose in the United States. She understands day-to-day health concerns as small manifestations of the sociocultural underpinnings of human disease and is excited to tackle public health crises like the opioid epidemic, not only in the United States but internationally as well.