Mentor Areas
- Suicide prevention
- Mood and trauma disorders
- Adolescent psychopathology
- Ecological momentary assessments
- Community engaged research
Description:
Adolescent suicide remains a major concern, and current prevention techniques are not effective for all. Particularly, adolescents who experience reduced ability to feel pleasure (anhedonia) may be at elevated risk for suicidal thoughts and may benefit less from preexisting interventions. This study aims to address this gap by developing and testing a new smartphone-based mental health intervention designed to enhance reward sensitivity and subsequently reduce suicidality.
This study uses a just-in-time adaptive intervention approach, in which participants receive brief guided activities delivered randomly throughout the day. These activities are designed to increase reward sensitivity, improve mood, and reduce suicidal ideation. The intervention is delivered through a mobile platform, and participants complete brief real-time surveys multiple times per day to track mood, motivation, context, and behavior.
The study is being conducted in multiple phases, which include:
- Phase 1: A co-design phase where adolescents and their caregivers provide feedback on the app to improve the intervention.
- Phase 2: A 2-week usability phase where adolescents will use the app daily so any remaining issues can be refined.
- Phase 3: A 6-week micro-randomized trial where adolescents will use the app daily to evaluate if the intervention is effective in reducing suicidal thoughts in adolescents
Undergraduate research assistants will gain exposure to clinical psychology research, digital mental health interventions, and data collection methods. Responsibilities may include assisting with recruitment and screening, supporting baseline and follow-up assessments, monitoring the mobile platform, and contributing to general study coordination and research tasks.
This project is ideal for students interested in clinical psychology, psychiatry, mental health, or digital health innovation, particularly those considering graduate training. We are looking for a yearlong commitment that includes a 3-month probation period. Interested students should email the study coordinator sydney.lempert@pennmedicine.upenn.edu and include a copy of their resume.
Preferred Qualifications
- Comfortability discussing and being exposed to sensitive topics (e.g. mental health, suicide)
- Prior research experience in psychology, psychiatry, public health, or a related field is preferred but not required
- Familiarity with research and data platforms (e.g. REDCap, MetricWire, Inquisit) is preferred but not required
- Strong organizational and detail-oriented skills
- Ability to manage tasks independently
Details:
Preferred Student Year
First-year, Second-Year, Junior
Academic Term
Spring, Summer
I prefer to have students start during the above term(s).Volunteer
Yes
Yes indicates that faculty are open to volunteers.Paid
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to paying students they engage in their research, regardless of their work-study eligibility.Work Study
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to hiring work-study-eligible students.