Dr D Gaysina, Dr Clara Strauss
No more applications being accepted
Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
One in five older adults is affected with depression and/or anxiety and needs professional help. Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services are open to all adults, however very fewer older adults access it, and only half of those who receive treatment get better. Because our population is getting older, we urgently need to know who are at a higher risk of depression and anxiety in late adulthood, and how to develop effective treatments for everyone. This PhD project will identify predictors of depression and anxiety, and outcomes of psychological treatments, in older adults. To achieve this, two complementary approaches will be used: one approach will utilize the existing longitudinal data from a British birth cohort, and second approach will be based on new data collected from older users of the IAPT services. Findings of the project will have important implications for developing more effective preventions and treatments against depression and anxiety in late life.
The successful candidate is expected: to have research interests in mental health and ageing; to be prepared to get intensive training in advanced research methods; and to feel confident in doing research in clinical settings. Research supervision and mentoring will be offered by the supervisory team: Dr Darya Gaysina (EDGE Lab at the University of Sussex, http://www.sussex.ac.uk/psychology/edgelab) and Drs Clara Strauss and Nick Grey (Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, https://www.sussexpartnership.nhs.uk
The School of Psychology is one of the largest centres for the study of psychology in the UK with nearly 50 academic faculty and over 1000 undergraduate and postgraduate students working in a rich and supportive learning environment. Psychology is a diverse discipline and our size means that we span major research areas in social, cognitive, biological, developmental and clinical psychology
Funding Notes
• This award will pay fees at the Home/EU rate and will provide a maintenance allowance (currently £14,777 per year) for 4 years.
• Candidates must have, or expect to obtain, a First or a high Upper Second Class Honours undergraduate degree, or equivalent qualification, and/or a Master's degree in Psychology or a related discipline
• Only full time students will be accepted.
References
Guidance for applicants:
• Please submit your application online at http://www.sussex.ac.uk/study/phd/apply for the 'PhD in Psychology' programme for September 2019.
o In the 'Supervisor suggested by applicant' section of your application form, please put name of supervisor(s)
o In the 'Proposed source of funding' section of your application form, please put ‘MHRUK'.
• Frequently Asked Questions relating to applying for a PhD in Psychology at the University of Sussex can be found at http://www.sussex.ac.uk/psychology/pgstudy/psychologyphdstudentships2019
Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr Darya Gaysina (d.gaysina@sussex.ac.uk) for more information about the project.