Approval of the proposed M-RISP grant would come at a critical time for the development of mental health-related research at San Diego State University (SDSU). Because the faculty is aging and the student body is growing, 50 percent of the faculty will be newly hired within the next 5 years. The SDSU administration is dedicated to developing strength in mental health research to match the strength that has already been developed in biological sciences. An M-RISP program at SDSU would build on the strength of an existing joint doctoral program in clinical psychology with University of California, San Diego (UCSD) that was begun in 1985. The M-RISP program at SDSU would be dedicated to promoting and supporting multidisciplinary research in mental health. Program activities will focus on: 1) increasing research collaborations among faculty members at SDSU and research-intensive institutions; 2) establishing national and international faculty networks for mental health research; 3) seeking and obtaining R01-level extramural funding; and 4) increasing faculty research productivity, as indicated by peer-reviewed presentations and publications. The faculty would obtain release time through the grant, matched by the university, and several minority students would be supported and provide the faculty with assistance. A systematic and extensive plan for educating both M-RISP faculty and students about high-quality mental health research is planned, with the help of collaborators from UCSD. In addition, four Independent Investigator projects associated with the M-RISP core are proposed and include: studies examining social exclusion, emotion regulation, self-control, and impulsive behavior, stress in the work place, basic research on perceptual categorizations, and examining self-esteem among minority and majority groups. All four of the independent investigators will focus on disparities. The SDSU administration is dedicated to the program and has committed matching funds and its full support to the M-RISP program. SDSU has submitted a application for a Career Opportunities in Research (COR) grant with whose activities the M-RISP activities will be closely coordinated if both are funded.
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