Whorrod Ph.D. Studentship: Psychological Strengths in Autism

Autism is a lifelong condition characterised by atypical social and repetitive behaviours. It costs the economy over £28 billion (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/jun/09/autism-costs-more-cancer-strokes-heart-disease) each year as most autistic adults are unemployed and require psychological support. This is arguably because autism research has focused on their weaknesses, leading to costly but typically ineffective ways to ‘normalise’ people with the condition. Less research has investigated the psychological strengths of autistic people – such as their enhanced logical thinking, attention to detail, and superior time perception (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/autism-make-logical-decisions-gambling-study-a7361046.html) – to help them cope and thrive in education and the workplace (https://theconversation.com/how-coping-mechanisms-allow-autistic-people-to-manage-their-condition-85932) .

Addressing these issues, the Ph.D. candidate will complete an interdisciplinary project through publishing articles in academic journals under the supervision of experts in cognitive, social, and applied clinical psychology. This will start by examining the scientific literature to uncover new, and explore poorly understood, psychological strengths in autism, which will be studied further using computerised experiments. These data will provide an important starting point to create a training programme to help autistic people use their psychological strengths in education and employment.

It will be conducted with, and include lab visits to, academic partners at the University of Cambridge. The project will also be conducted within nationwide frameworks for autism research (e.g., the National Autistic Society’s Student Support Services), with the potential for a research rotation in a charity/policy setting (https://www.autism.org.uk/services/education/further-education.aspx).

For more information about this Ph.D., and similar projects, please visit https://www.punitqshah.com/students-supervision and contact Dr Punit Shah [Email Address Removed] and Professor Mitchell Callan ([Email Address Removed]) with informal queries about your application.

Interviews will be held in early December.

The successful applicant should:
1. Fulfil the entrance requirements for a Department for Psychology PhD http://www.bath.ac.uk/study/pg/programmes/mphi-psyc/
2. Have strong statistical analysis skills
3. Have experience of conducting psychological research

Applicants should apply direct to the University of Bath: https://samis.bath.ac.uk/urd/sits.urd/run/siw_ipp_lgn.login?process=siw_ipp_app&code1=RDUPS-FP01&code2=0013

Preferred start date: 21st January 2019