Adaptation and evaluation of brief, personality-targeted interventions for university students.
Canadian university undergrads have alarmingly high rates of risky patterns of alcohol, cannabis, and prescription drug use. This substance misuse has harmful short- and long-term effects that negatively impact students, their friends and families, and their communities. Harms can include academic struggles and even university drop-out. These persisting high rates of substance misuse reflect a lack of effectiveness of universal, one-size-fits-all prevention programs currently used by Canadian universities. Prevention programs that are targeted and personalized to characteristics of vulnerable students are greatly needed.Univenture is a research partnership with one goal: to adapt, test, and begin sharing an effective, sustainable targeted wellness program to tackle the timely social issue of heavy drinking and other substance misuse on Canadian campuses. Our partnership involves: social science experts specializing in substance misuse, emerging adulthood (ages 18-25), and barriers to undergrad academic achievement; university Student Affairs units, student-led organizations, and in-house professional training clinics; and other methodological and national partner organizations (i.e., Canadian Research Initiative in Substance Misuse, Post-secondary Education Partnership–Alcohol Harms, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, Mental Health Commission of Canada, Nova Scotia Health Authority Research Methods Unit, Strategy for Patient Oriented Research SUPPORT Units, and the Strongest Families Institute). These partners bring together the necessary scientific and practical knowledge, methodological expertise, lived experience, and knowledge sharing capacity to tackle this critical social issue in a manner that no one group could alone. Our project is a 5-year, multi-site, controlled study involving 1st and 2nd year undergrads at 5 representatively diverse Canadian university sites (Dalhousie, St. Francis Xavier, Montreal, Manitoba, and British Columbia-Okanagan). We will test a program targeting personality traits linked to substance misuse. An earlier version of this program led to marked reductions in substance use and distress in adolescents. Our novel objectives are to examine the program’s effects on: substance use and distress among emerging adults; uptake of prescription drug use given the opioid crisis; and undergrads’ academic success. In parallel, we will assess 2 versions of the program: a face-to-face and an innovative and accessible technology-assisted distance-delivery format, both compared to normal campus services alone.
Dr. Conrod’s team will have two roles in this study:coordination of the UdM study site and adaptation of the Preventure Programme for university students.We hope to hire an enthusiastic, clinician with experience delivering cognitive-behavioural and motivational interventions to young people. Candidates should have a PhD in clinical psychology, Psychiatric Nursing or Social Work, Behavioural Health or related disciplines and experience in conducting research on clinical interventions.
The candidate will be expected to:
- Demonstrate high fidelity delivery of Preventure interventions with youth.
- Demonstrate high fidelity delivery of Preventure training sessions to health and educational professionals
- Contribute to updating and adapting treatment material based on research findings from trials involving Preventure, and qualitative and quantitative feedback from youth attending university.
- Help manage the Preventure Training Network, including providing webinars updating trainees on new findings and protocols related to the Preventure Program.
Essential skills:spoken and written English, professional degree in Psychology, Education, Counselling, or related fields, supervised practice delivering CBT and motivational interventions. Bilingual applicants will be prioritized.
Interested candidates are to contact: Patricia Conrod, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, CHU Sainte Justine, 3175 Côte-Ste-Catherine, Centre de Recherche, Montreal, Quebec, H3T 1C5, Canada
Applications will be accepted until the positions are filled.
Expected start date: 2021-10-04
Job Types: Full-time, Contract
Salary: $35,259.00-$75,445.00 per year