PRR Project

Summary

Description of tasks to be assigned to the prospective employee :The prospective employee is expected to be focused on pursuing high-quality research with scientific autonomy that brings together systemic clinical and health psychology with an interdisciplinary approach. The core task to be assigned to the prospective employee will be to establish a research line integrated in the scientific strategy of CES Thematic Line RISE – Risk(s), Ecologies, Health, particularly within the topic ‘Ecological and social conception of health/illness’, which aims at designing and evaluating interventions in health, health care, mental health and illness, promoting and supporting the role of patients, families and communities in care and healing. The activities within the research line will aim to: i) examine individual, family and societal-level aspects of psychosocial adjustment to increased susceptibility to common and heritable health conditions; ii) develop systemic-oriented psychological interventions to support individuals, families and communities in managing health or psychosocial risks/ adversity and promote wellbeing; and iii) to find evidence of the cross or circular effects between health risks and psychosocial vulnerability.Within these topics, it is also expected that the employee makes substantial efforts to: a) develop and conduct interdisciplinary research studies within the scientific topics related to this position, bringing together systemic clinical and health psychology; b) provide supervision and mentorship to Master and Doctoral students of the FPCE-UC, as well as to other researchers, particularly early career researchers; c) suggest and implement structured plans to develop and consolidate innovative research avenues; d) assist with the implementation of research initiatives and services (e.g., scientific meetings, consortiums, knowledge transfer); e) establish and/or consolidate national-based and international research collaborations; f) capture external funding (national and international) to pursue its research with national and international partnerships; and g) optimize the dissemination of research results and outputs, both for the scientific and the general community. Scientific profile required by the hiring institution :Based on the previously mentioned tasks, the prospective employee should have a background in Clinical and Health Psychology, with a clear emphasis and expertise in the psychosocial aspects of health/disease and its systemic connections between the individual and family and community contexts. The prospective employee should also demonstrate a commitment to interdisciplinary research bridging the health, human and social sciences, along with a proficient use of empirical methodologies and analytical theoretical frameworks. These attributes are expected to foster collaborations with other R&D Units within the UC, namely from the fields of public health and medicine, as well as with hospitals and patient advocacy groups. Additionally, prior experience in securing competitive funding and leading research projects and research teams, the ability to establish and sustain strategic international collaborations that can improve the quality of the scientific research performed, and to attract and train young researchers will also be required skills to fit this position. Moreover, knowledge transfer skills (e.g., outreach and dissemination of research outputs to maximize its social impact) will be highly valued. Rationale for the need to hire for the indicated scientific area.While healthcare technologies in disease risk prediction and assessment hold great promise of bringing benefits to individual and collective health, their implementation also raises psychosocial concerns and has the potential to increase inequities. People are increasingly identified as being at risk for common and rare conditions, and facing decisions about what to do with information they perceive as both valuable and risky. To keep pace with the biomedical advances, an integrated, systemic-level approach is key to helping individuals, families and communities manage the consequences of sensitive health information and build communal links that sustain a sense of connection and empowerment.By strengthening the research potential of the Thematic Line RISE, with expertise in psychosocial studies on health adversity and vulnerability, CES and the Systemic research developed in FPCE-UC Master and Doctoral related programs uphold its commitment to producing groundbreaking research, with international impact, which contributes to substantial personal, societal and economic benefits for those facing vulnerability, empowering them psychosocially, as well as in strong alignment with the SDG of the United Nations (particularly those aimed at improving health and wellbeing of individuals, families and society at large and reducing inequalities in the access to the benefits of health care).