Research Associate - Mental Health Curriculum - Resources for Parents/Carers

Role Description

Department

The Department of Education at the University of York is internationally renowned for its work on mental health and wellbeing in school-aged children. A recent collaborative project between the Department of Education and the PSHE Association (the national body for personal, social, health and economic education) resulted in the development of an innovative neuroscience-informed mental health and wellbeing curriculum for primary schools - called Foundations for Wellbeing. The aim of this project is to (a) conduct research that will inform development of new resources for parents/carers to complement the curriculum and (b) design/produce such resources based on the research. Majority of work on the project will be conducted remotely, except for focus group data collection in York (three focus groups).

Main purpose of the role

• To conduct research (focus groups with parents and a mixed-methods survey with primary school teachers) under the supervision of Dr Dorjee
• Contribute to preparation of a framework and resources for parents/carers based on the findings of the research conducted as part of the project and further relevant research

Role

The Research Associate will support design and data collection, data analysis and synthesis of findings of the project, and production of the parent/carer resources under the guidance of Dr Dusana Dorjee. This will involve preparation of a mixed-methods survey for primary school teachers and analysis of data gathered from the survey. In addition, the Associate will conduct in-person focus groups with parents of primary school children and analyse the qualitative data. Based on the findings, the Associate will support preparation of a framework for the parent/carer resources and work on producing the resources (including learning content overviews and worksheets).

This is a part-time role working 18.50 hours a week on a fixed term contract up to 31 October 2026.

Skills, Experience & Qualification needed

• PhD in Psychology or Psychology in Education or Education
• Knowledge of mixed-methods research (particularly surveys and focus groups) in school mental health and wellbeing context (ideally with primary school teachers and parents)
• Knowledge of developmental research on mental health and wellbeing in children with focus on prevention, and application of this research in educational context
• Ability to translate relevant research into educational practice (ideally into materials to support learning of a mental health and wellbeing curriculum)
• Ability to work as part of a team and also to work independently using own initiative