This application is for a 5-year renewal of the T32 Training Program in the Development of Psychopathology: From Brain and Behavior to Intervention. Because mental and substance abuse disorders are more likely to arise early in life, early identification of risk processes and early intervention are crucial (Insel, 2014). As the field has been shifting from a behavioral to a neurodevelopmental focus, this training program also has evolved to reflect important advances in human brain development. The major thrust of this interdisciplinary program is to produce scientists who will (1) contribute to the state of knowledge about neurobiological and psychosocial mechanisms underlying the development and maintenance of psychopathology, and (2) translate findings from basic research to the construction of empirically-based interventions for the prevention and amelioration of psychopathology and for the promotion of mental health. This training program provides individual mentoring in multidisciplinary science complemented by didactic activities. A personalized training plan is developed for each fellow and re-evaluated each semester. In the last five years, we have continued to increase training on multidisciplinary research on neurobiological, psychophysiological, genetic, and psychosocial mechanisms underlying psychiatric illness. To this end, we have made some changes to our core, training faculty. All 24 faculty are currently funded, with 75% as PIs on at least one grant, and the others serving as co-PIs or investigators. Two-thirds of our current training faculty are actively involved in neuroscience research. Another 54% of our faculty conduct intervention studies aimed at reducing or preventing psychiatric problems including depression, anxiety, and substance use. In the last decade, all of our 26 pre- and 10 post-doctoral trainees have continued to contribute to the field through scholarly research, teaching, and administration. Three predocs remain in training on this T32; 2 former trainees are working on their dissertations; 4 are doing their required clinical internship. All 17 remaining former predoc trainees have completed their PhDs; 4 are engaged in research intensive faculty positions in academic departments of psychology or medicine; 3 are doing research intensive postdoctoral fellowships. The remaining 10 former predoc trainees are doing some research related work including teaching, supervision, or administration. Of the 10 postdoctoral fellows, 2 are still in training; 6 of the 8 (75%) former postdocs are actively involved in research intensive faculty positions and all have received some kind of external funding (e.g., K?s; R01, Foundations). In the past 10 years, 22% of all trainees were from under- represented ethnic minority or economically disadvantaged groups; 83% are female. This renewal application proposes to again support 4 predoctoral and 2 postdoctoral trainees annually. Goals for the next 5 years are to continue to train independent research scientists who can discover and translate basic knowledge from clinical neuroscience into interventions for reducing psychopathology.
The primary aim of this interdisciplinary training program is to provide a strong foundation in research design, quantitative methods, and critical thinking. Trainees will develop independent programs of research for the purpose of (a) discovering the neurobiological and psychosocial mechanisms underlying the development and maintenance of psychopathology, and (b) translating this basic knowledge into empirically-based interventions that reduce current and future psychopathology and promote mental health and adaptation.
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