Research Fellow - School of Psychology - 105517 - Grade 7

Position Details

School of Psychology

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,130 to £45,413 with potential progression once in post to £48,149

Grade: 7

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to December 2025

Closing date: 2nd April 2025

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Background

How do different subtypes of childhood maltreatment relate to various forms of impulsivity to increase risk for psychopathology? We are looking for a full-time postdoctoral research fellow to help us answer this question. 

The successful candidate will be based at the Centre for Human Brain Health within the School of Psychology, which is one of the strongest and most active psychology departments in the country. The Research Fellow will work on an exciting new grant funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) on the impact of childhood maltreatment on state and trait measures of impulsivity (https://tinyurl.com/3tswn56e). You will work with Professor Stephane De Brito (Centre for Human Brain Health) and Professor Peter Tino (School of Computer Science). The project will combine both new cross-sectional and already collected prospective longitudinal behavioural, neurocognitive and neuroimaging data that will be analysed with univariate and multivariate (i.e. machine learning) methods. 

We are keen to work with an experienced, skilled and passionate candidate with a background in developmental psychopathology, structural and functional neuroimaging, and advanced statistical methods as well as with experience in running neuroimaging studies with children and adolescents. Candidates with enthusiasm for supporting and developing students and Research Assistants are particularly encouraged to apply.

Role Summary

The successful candidate will lead our research project on the impact of childhood maltreatment on state and trait measures of impulsivity. They will complete an empirical programme, engage with internal and external collaborators and ensure findings are shared with the academic community and the general public. 

Main Duties

The responsibilities may include some but not all of the responsibilities outlined below.

• Develop and conduct behavioural and neuroimaging experiments in the laboratory and online if needed
• Contribute and manage overall recruitment efforts of participants and families through liaison with external sources of recruitment (e.g., social services, schools, etc.)
• Analyse and interpret experimental and correlational behavioural and neuroimaging data, using univariate and multivariate methods
• Apply theoretical knowledge to develop new intellectual understanding of the association between maltreatment, impulsivity and psychopathology
• Prepare and disseminate research outputs for academic publications, national and international conferences, research seminars etc.
• Help with supervision of and provide guidance to students assisting with research-related work and provide guidance to PhD students where appropriate to project
• Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods 
• Contribute to public engagement activities under supervision of project leader
• Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines

Person Specification

Skills and Experience:

• MA, MSc or similar in Experimental Psychology, Developmental Psychopathology, or closely related field
• PhD (or near to completion) in an area related to developmental psychopathology
• High level analytical capability
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly (including proficiency in English language)
• Excellent knowledge of theories and models of developmental psychopathology
• Background in experimental psychology, including extensive experience with experimental design and statistical analysis
• Strong experience with collecting and analysing structural (both voxel-based and surface-based morphometry) and functional neuroimaging data using FreeSurfer and SPM is essential
• Programming skills (e.g., Matlab, R, Python etc.) and experience with programming psychological experiments (using E-Prime, Matlab, Presentation, Psychotoolbox, PsychoPy etc.) for use in laboratory and online
• Experience of recruiting and working with children and adolescents or clinical populations is essential
• Excellent academic writing and presentation skills; ideally academic publication record

Planning and Organising

• Contribute to the planning and organising of the specific research project 
• Co-ordinate own staff and support staff on research-related matters
• Co-organising research seminars

Problem Solving and decision making

• Decide in consultation with the principal investigator as appropriate, on the most appropriate way of undertaking the specified research activities
• Decide in consultation with the principal investigator as appropriate how to analyse and interpret the data from the specified research activities
• Decide in consultation with the principal investigator as appropriate what knowledge to draw on and how to apply it to develop new intellectual understanding
• Decide in collaboration with co-authors which aspects of the research findings to include in a presentation or a publication and how to convey the findings
• Give guidance, support and advice to students on research related work including PhD students and decide the most appropriate method of providing this supervision

Internal and External relationships

• Liaise with research staff and support staff on research-related matters
• Liaise with external collaborators on the research, where appropriate
• Give presentations and/or contribute to presentations at national and/or international conferences
• Referee articles for peer-reviewed academic journals
• Participate in networks for the exchange of information and to form relationships for future collaboration
• Liaise with members of the public

DBS required

The University is committed to safeguarding and we promote safe recruitment practice, therefore all associated pre-employment checks will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. Due to the nature of the work undertaken in this role all successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory DBS clearance prior to appointment.

Informal enquiries to Stephane de Brito, email: s.a.debrito@bham.ac.uk 

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.