Clinical and health psychology
The research involves the investigation of the key research themes of cognition, interpersonal and family environments and the integration of psychological explanation to derive understanding and intervention, usually in the form of clinical trials. These spread across a range of psychological disorders, including:
- Psychoses
- Affective disorders
- Physical illness and disorders in childhood and adolescence
- Behaviour in other populations
Different disorders are linked by common themes, models and methodologies. Thus there is added value in integrating common themes to address different clinical research problems and the treatment of different disorders. The application of psychological models is in the development of psychological treatments or other relevant interventions to a range of psychological disorders, including those associated with physical ill health or appropriate behavioural or organisational features.
The group is an international leader in the development and evaluation of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT). This has resulted in significant expertise in the development and management of clinical trials involving psychological treatments.
Clinical trials
Clinical trials have been funded in the psychological treatment of:
- Acute schizophrenia
- Chronic schizophrenia
- High risk of psychosis group
- Auditory hallucinations
- Dual diagnosis
- Bipolar affective disorders
- Anxiety in the elderly
- Generalised anxiety disorder
- Social anxiety
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Depression
- Childhood depression
- Childhood behavioural disorders
- Alzheimer's disease
- Elderly patients suffering hip fracture and chronic fatigue syndrome
Research activity is also focused on understanding the behaviour and problems associated with different populations, such as healthcare providers, and drivers and those at risk of accidents. The integration of research themes allows research capability and activity to expand into new and relevant areas as the opportunity arises. An important aspect of this research activity has been the dissemination of interventions within appropriate organisations. For example, CBT for psychosis has been included within NICE guidelines and in the US PORT guidelines on the treatment of schizophrenia and has resulted in considerable national and international impact.
Research aims
The purposes of the group's research are:
- To advance the understanding of various psychopathologies through the development of relevant psychological models of disorder and formulation and evaluation of theoretically-driven treatment and interventions
- To improve human health by increasing the understanding of factors that influence both mental and physical health, and develop and evaluate novel psychological solutions to ill health in general that have a demonstrable applicability to health services
- To understand the psychological processes specific to different populations, such as healthcare providers and those at risk of accidents
- To expand applied psychological knowledge into new and relevant fields. The group is made up of clinical and health psychologists although strong, productive and well-established collaborative links exist with psychiatry, other medical specialities and professional groups as well as with NHS clinical psychologists
The group's research interests broadly involve the investigation of the influence of psychological mechanisms within the development, maintenance and treatment of various psychological disorders. Furthermore we are involved with the development and evaluation of psychological treatments and their implementation.
Research interests
Major current research interests in the department include:
- The influence of psychosocial factors, including:
- Expressed Emotions (EE) and attribution style in psychological and psychiatric disorders
- Information processing in schizophrenia and manic-depressive psychosis
- Assessment of hallucinations and delusions
- Evaluation of cognitive-behaviour therapy
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Anxiety disorders and information processing
- Psychological factors relating to physical disorders
- Evaluation of staff training
- Developmental approaches to psychopathology
- Child maltreatment and conduct disorder
- Technology in child interviewing
- Health psychology, including:
- Communication and psychological interventions with cancer patients
- Psychology of oral health
- Symptom complaints and quality of life assessment
Members of the department hold a number of research grants from various funding sources. Staff are actively involved in research collaborations with other colleagues inside the School and with other colleagues within the University. The group is also in active collaboration with colleagues in the NHS and at other universities.
