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Post-Graduate Research Degrees in Mental Health

CMHR and Graduate Studies

The Centre for Mental Health Research offers the opportunity for full-time or part-time study for Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degrees by research. These degrees are offered within the graduate studies fields of Epidemiology and Population Health and of Psychology. Further details about these programs can be found at http://info.anu.edu.au/studyat/_Graduate_School/Study_Fields/_epidemiology/index.asp / (Epidemiology) and http://info.anu.edu.au/studyat/_Graduate_School/Study_Fields/_psychology/index.asp (Psychology).

The Centre welcomes applications from students with first degrees in any area relevant to mental health, including psychology, medicine, epidemiology, sociology, statistics and neurosciences. The Centre is particularly interested in research students who wish to pursue studies within its current areas of interest, as described in the major projects below.

 

About CMHR

The aims of CMHR are to undertake research on the epidemiology and prevention of mental disorders, with particular emphasis on studies of relevance for public health, and to provide a national source of expertise in this field. CMHR was established in 1975 by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) which provides a grant to the Australian National University as the host institution. This grant is supplemented by additional funding from the University and from other project grants, including grants from beyondblue (the National Depression Initiative).

 

CMHR's Major Projects

CMHR's staff and students work collaboratively on a number of major projects, including the PATH Through Life Project and several mental health literacy projects.

 

PATH Through Life Project

This is a large longitudinal cohort study of common mental disorders that started in 1999. The study will examine psychosocial, nutritional and molecular genetic factors in anxiety, depression, substance abuse and cognitive deficits across the adult lifespan. The study involves 2,500 participants in each of three age cohorts: 20-24 years, 40-44 years and 60-64 years. The cohorts will be followed every four years for 20 years. This project is being carried out collaboratively with the Division of Molecular Medicine at the John Curtin School of Medical Research, the CSIRO Division of Human Nutrition and The National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health. An applicant who is interested in this project could select a theme from the extensive range of data already collected on the three cohorts in the first wave of the study and from the second wave of data collection for the 20+ and 40+ cohorts.

The PATH Through Life Project also involves a number of sub-studies that provide opportunities for students with an interest in neurosciences or genetic epidemiology. Data on the brains of a large sub-sample of participants have been collected using MRI scanning. These data allow for research on the association of structural brain variables with mental health. DNA has also been collected on all PATH participants, allowing for research on genetic epidemiology of mental disorders.

Contact:

Anxiety/depression component: Professor Helen Christensen
Cognitive deficits component: Professor Helen Christensen or Dr Kaarin Anstey
Brain imaging component: Dr Kaarin Anstey
Genetics component: Professor Helen Christensen

 

Mental Health Literacy Projects

These projects examine public knowledge and attitudes about mental disorders and their treatment. Research conducted to date has shown major discrepancies between public and professional beliefs. Such discrepancies have implications for the willingness of people to seek appropriate help if they develop a mental disorder and to adhere to many standard treatments. Current research is examining whether beliefs and attitudes affect how people manage their anxiety and depression symptoms and whether outcome is affected. There are opportunities for further work on the nature of belief systems about mental disorders and their treatment.

Other projects involve
(1) assessing mental health literacy in high school students;
(2) evaluating the effectiveness of web based interventions for depression in adolescence;
(3) evaluating the effectiveness of telecounselling for depression in the adult population;
(4) evaluating the quality and effectiveness of web-based interventions for depression;
(5) a randomized controlled trial of the evaluation of MoodGYM (moodgym.anu.edu.au) in general medical practice; and
(6) a depression prevention trial in older people.

Applicants who wish to consider research topics in these areas should contact the following members of staff:

Prevention of depression in older people: Professor Helen Christensen
Web based interventions; telecounselling: Professor Helen Christensen or Dr Kathy Griffiths

 

The Ageing Research Unit

The Ageing Research Unit is conducting a number of longitudinal ageing studies based at ANU and in collaboration with other universities. Current research areas include cognitive ageing, driving, retirement, policy relating to mental health and retirement, workforce participation and ageing, gender differences in well-being, neuroimaging, the effects of HRT on cognition, the epidemiology of depression in later life, factors associated with longevity and mortality and longitudinal methods. The unit has active collaborations with Penn State University in the US and Flinders University and students are encouraged to work or interact with these sites.

Contact: Dr Kaarin Anstey

 

Consumer Research Unit

The Centre has recently established an anxiety and depression Consumer Research Unit (CRU). The aims of the Unit are to
(a) conduct research and develop methodologies that focus on depression and anxiety from a consumer perspective;
(b) provide post-graduate training in consumer-oriented research to qualified candidates with personal experience of depression and anxiety;
(c) develop strategies to ensure that the Unit's research findings are accessible to consumers as well as researchers, health professionals and policy makers;
(d) contribute to mental health policy; and
(e) reduce the stigma associated with depression and anxiety disorders by breaking down the distinction between consumer and researcher.

All members of CRU are qualified mental health researchers who have personally experienced a depression or anxiety condition. Staff and students are engaged in a range of CMHR mental health literacy and prevention projects. Other projects include the identification of consumer research priorities for depression and anxiety and the investigation of the media portrayal of mental health problems. There are opportunities for qualified graduates with an excellent academic record relevant to mental health research and personal experience of depression and anxiety to join the unit as PhD students.

Contact: Dr Kathy Griffiths

 

Family and Community Research Unit

The Family and Community Health Research Unit (FaCHRU) is involved in a range of research projects concerned with (1) the impact of family and community circumstances on health (especially mental health and wellbeing) and, conversely, (2) the impact of ill health on family and community participation and quality of life. Community circumstances are taken to include institutional environments, eg workplaces for adults, schools and colleges for young people, as well as neighbourhoods and more diffuse cultural influences. Current projects cover: relationships between family changes and mental health; mental health problems in groups of welfare benefit recipients; relationships between voluntary participation and mental health; the impact of working conditions, unemployment and early retirement on health and wellbeing; and long-term health outcomes associated with childhood family adversity and abuse. A fundamental aspect of these projects is the attempt to draw implications for policy and practice from research findings and to help develop specific interventions, and several studies involve partnerships with government and non-government organisations. The Unit is particularly interested in supervising PhD studies that utilise existing data sets (both our own and publicly available data) or that combine such secondary analysis with students' own data collections to obtain multiple perspectives on topics important to policy and practice. As well as the expertise available from within CMHR, our members of staff have extensive research collaborations and draw on external associate supervisors and advisers for individual PhD projects. There are several active collaborations between CMHR and the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH), located close by at the ANU, and co-supervision of research students by staff of the two Centres can be arranged.

Contact: Dr Peter Butterworth

 

Scholarships

A limited number of ANU scholarships are awarded to candidates for the PhD and MPhil degrees at CMHR. Generous supplements (currently up to A$5,000 per annum) may also be awarded to candidates in these areas, in addition to the basic stipend (living allowance) of A$19,616 per annum (2007 rate) tax free and, if applicable, an additional allowance for travel to Canberra and a grant for the reimbursement of some removal expenses. A thesis reimbursement allowance is also available. The ANU also awards Australian Postgraduate Awards and ANU Graduate School Scholarships. The closing date for scholarship applications is 31 October 2007 for citizens and permanent residents of Australia and New Zealand and 31 August 2007 for international applicants. Overseas candidates may apply for ANU scholarships (stipend only), and International Postgraduate Research Scholarships (IPRS) (fees only), or may apply under the Australian Development Scholarships (ADS) scheme administered by the Commonwealth Government through AusAID. Further information on opportunities for scholarships can be obtained from http://www.anu.edu.au/graduate/scholarships/.

 

Visiting the Centre

Prospective applicants are invited to visit the Centre on Eggleston Road at the ANU campus (Building 63) or to discuss potential topics of study by 'phone or e-mail. The Centre's number is (02) 6125 2741. Please contact us to arrange a suitable time to visit.