Resourcing resilience: Positive psychology among adolescents living with HIV

Applications for this PhD position beginning October 2020 are invited to join the Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) at the Universities of Brighton and Sussex, for a 3-year PhD working on an exciting study on positive psychology and HIV.

Globally, an estimated 2.1 million adolescents are living with HIV. Adolescents are the only age group among whom AIDS-related mortality is on the rise despite free access to life-saving antiretroviral treatment (ART). This has been attributed to low HIV testing, treatment initiation and retention in care, which are compromised by a negative synergy of HIV-related stigma and poor mental health (1–4).

Critical evidence gaps limit our ability to capitalise on young people’s resilience and develop adolescent-centred HIV services. First, there is currently no research on positive psychology among adolescents living with HIV, but this is a critical concept for informing adolescent HIV and mental health services. Meta-analytic evidence suggests that adults commonly experience positive changes and benefits after their HIV diagnoses, and this was associated with improved mental and physical health outcomes (5). Second, there is a dearth of research on what works to improve the mental health of and reduce the stigma experienced by adolescents living with HIV (2,6,7). Third, research on adolescent HIV has nearly exclusively focused on negative and often reductionist narratives, which can further perpetuate self and societal stigma, weaken mental health and hence damage linkage to care and adherence to ART (8).

PhD Objectives

This PhD will be an interdisciplinary exploration of positive growth (benefit finding; cognitive reappraisal) among adolescents living with HIV in the UK. The successful candidate may choose to add a comparative component with a second country that varies substantially in terms of HIV prevalence, health service infrastructure, linkage to care and perceptions around adolescent HIV (e.g. South Africa). The second country will be chosen by the applicant with negotiation by the supervisory team. The PhD will qualitatively explore young people’s trajectories towards positive growth and views around their HIV status, in order to inform context-relevant and age-appropriate mental health and HIV interventions.

Learning outcomes and supervisory team:
This PhD offers a wide range of training opportunities and the student will be able to acquire essential skills from a variety of areas including research methods, research governance and ethics, publishing in peer-reviewed journals and conference presentations. The supervisory team will span the disciplines of health psychology and global health, across three Brighton & Sussex Medical School departments (Primary Care & Public Health, Medical Education and Global Health and Infection) and with an international collaborator. Dr Marija Pantelic (Department of Medical Education) has published widely on adolescent HIV and stigma. Dr Collins Iwuji (Department of Global Health and Infection) has extensively researched linkage to HIV care in South Africa. Prof Carrie Llewellyn (Department of Primary Care and Public Health) brings decades of research on HIV and health psychology in the UK including positive psychology. The supervisory team have well-established collaborations with UK and international civil society organisations and universities. This PhD will provide the successful candidate with critical skills and substantial experience to make them a highly competitive candidate for a postdoctoral research position, especially in the fields of sexual health, health psychology and public health.