معرفی
Dr. Sonya Deschenes is a Lecturer/Assistant Professor and Ad Astra Fellow in the UCD School of Psychology at University College Dublin. She holds a PhD from Concordia University and completed postdoctoral research at McGill University. Her research focuses on the intersection of mental and physical health comorbidity, particularly examining biopsychosocial mechanisms linking mental health conditions (e.g., depression, anxiety) with chronic illnesses like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. She directs the UCD PATH Lab, exploring psychosocial approaches to health. Key grants include the Wellcome Trust-funded REENWEE project and Ad Astra Fellowships. She coordinates modules on Health Psychology, Identity/Sexuality, and Psych & Health: Population. Her work emphasizes longitudinal epidemiological methods and precision mental health integration in diabetes care.
Education:
- PhD in Psychology, Concordia University (Canada)
- Postdoctoral Fellowship in Mental Health Epidemiology, McGill University
Research Interests: Comorbidity between mental/physical health, psychosocial determinants of health, adverse childhood experiences, digital phenotyping, and diabetes stigma. Her grants include studies on diabetes stigma real-time impacts, psychosocial needs in high-risk cancer patients, and longitudinal data analysis methods.
Publications: Over 150 peer-reviewed articles, including work on diabetes stigma, childhood maltreatment's metabolic consequences, and social media's mental health impacts. Recent focus on network analysis to map symptom interactions in diabetes and depression.
Grants & Awards: Wellcome Trust funding, Ad Astra Fellowships, and leadership in international collaborations like the PSAD Study Group. Awards include recognition for research on diabetes stigma and precision medicine integration.
Labs & Teams: Director of UCD PATH Lab (ucdpathlab.com), collaborating on transdisciplinary projects linking mental health and chronic disease prevention.
