# Eileen Britt

Eileen Frances Britt is a New Zealand academic psychologist, and is a full professor at the University of Canterbury, specialising in motivational interviewing.

## Academic career

Britt's father was an art teacher, who created murals in collaboration with Māori, including one at the University of Canterbury. Britt says she learned the value of partnership in education from her father. Britt completed a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Canterbury, which she followed with a Master of Social Science at the University of Waikato, with a thesis titled Solvent abuse in New Zealand: Descriptive data. Britt then completed a PhD titled Enhancing Diabetes Self-Management: Motivational Enhancement Therapy at the University of Canterbury. She also has a postgraduate diploma in clinical psychology and a diploma in te reo Māori. Britt practised as a psychologist for fifteen years, before joining the faculty of the University of Canterbury as a clinical educator in psychology in 1999. She was promoted to full professor within the School of Psychology, Speech and Hearing in 2024.
Britt's research focuses on motivational interviewing, a psychological technique which uses "strengths-based guided conversation". Britt partnered with Work and Income New Zealand over 11-years to introduce motivational interviewing techniques for staff working with unemployed people, and has also taught engineering lecturers to use the technique. Britt has researched the use of motivational interviewing in sports coaching, treatment of eating disorders, and in services working with violent offenders.

## Honours and awards

In 2022 Britt was awarded the Te Whatu Kairangi award, a national teaching award for tertiary educators.

## Selected works

* Eileen Britt; Stephen M Hudson; Neville M Blampied (1 May 2004). "Motivational interviewing in health settings: a review". Patient Education and Counseling. 53 (2): 147–155. doi:10.1016/S0738-3991(03)00141-1. ISSN 0738-3991. PMID 15140454. Wikidata Q35771888.
* Eileen Britt; Neville M Blampied; Stephen M. Hudson (1 January 2003). "Motivational interviewing: a review". Australian Psychologist. 38 (3): 193–201. doi:10.1080/00050060310001707207. ISSN 0005-0067. Wikidata Q124932349.
* Charis Scott; Audrey McKinlay; Tracey McLellan; Eileen Britt; Randolph Grace; Martin MacFarlane (15 December 2014). "A comparison of adult outcomes for males compared to females following pediatric traumatic brain injury". Neuropsychology. 29 (4): 501–508. doi:10.1037/NEU0000074. ISSN 0894-4105. PMID 25495834. Wikidata Q44799389.
* S Dean; E Britt; E Bell; J Stanley; Sunny Collings (1 July 2016). "Motivational interviewing to enhance adolescent mental health treatment engagement: a randomized clinical trial". Psychological Medicine. 46 (9): 1961–1969. doi:10.1017/S0033291716000568. ISSN 0033-2917. PMID 27045520. Wikidata Q50220882.
* Eileen Britt; David H. Gleaves (July 2011). "Measurement and Prediction of Clinical Psychology Students' Satisfaction with Clinical Supervision". The Clinical Supervisor. 30 (2): 172–182. doi:10.1080/07325223.2011.604274. ISSN 0732-5223. Wikidata Q60047108.
* McIntosh VV; Britt E; Bulik CM (1 April 1994). "Cosmetic breast augmentation and eating disorders". The New Zealand Medical Journal. 107 (976): 151–152. ISSN 0028-8446. PMID 8164900. Wikidata Q52919869.
* Sara Soleymani; Eileen Britt; Mark Wallace-Bell (May 2018). "Motivational interviewing for enhancing engagement in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) treatment: A review of the literature". Aggression and Violent Behavior. 40: 119–127. doi:10.1016/J.AVB.2018.05.005. ISSN 1359-1789. Wikidata Q124929349.