PhD Studentships in Psychology 2025

PhD Studentships in Psychology 2025

Applications are invited from excellent candidates in relation to the PhD projects described below. It is recommended that potential applicants contact the supervisors informally prior to applying. Interested candidates may apply for PhD study throughout the year. However, fully funded PhD studentships are available for PhD study starting September 2025. The Studentship will include a bursary (€16,000) and EU fees. For non-EU applicants, a non-EU fee waiver may also be available, but this cannot be guaranteed (a difference of approximately €6000p.a.).

Selection for bursary will be competitive and will take place in early July 2025. Shortlisted candidates should be available for interview in mid to late July for an online interview. Note that admission to the faculty of Education and Health Sciences to undertake a PhD degree is a separate process.

Applications can be made by submitting (1) a current two-page academic CV and (2) an expression of interest document to psychology@ul.ie with the subject ‘PhD Studentship Application’. The expression of interest document should be submitted in Word (.doc or .docx) format and should be no more than two pages. The applicant should describe their own suitability for one of the advertised projects (50% weighted) and how they propose to develop the project (50% weighted). Queries about the process can be made to Dr Jenny Roth Jenny.Roth@ul.ie

The closing date for applications to the studentship competition is July 4th at 12pm (Irish Standard Time). We reserve the right to not make an award.

Title: Loneliness and mental health outcomes: Exploring associations between loneliness and depression symptoms over time using network approaches

Supervisors: Dr Ann-Marie Creaven (ann-marie.creaven@ul.ie) ; Dr Aoife Whiston (aoife.whiston@ul.ie)

Project Description : Loneliness is a subjective negative experience that results from perceiving our social relationships to be inadequate. Occasional experiences of loneliness are common and are thought to prompt us to re-engage with our social connections; however, when loneliness is chronic or very intensively felt it can contribute to the development of significant mental health issues like depression. This PhD project aims to better understand when and how loneliness prompts social re-engagement and when and how it contributes to the development of depression symptoms and other significant mental health issues, using statistical techniques including network analysis.  Naturally, we are seeking a student with a keen interest in the topic of loneliness and/or mental health. In addition, the ideal candidate will also have an interest in developing quantitative data analysis skills. The PhD is supervised by Dr. Ann-Marie Creaven (expert in loneliness) and Dr. Aoife Whiston (expert in network analysis); however, the candidate will also engage with external experts in loneliness and public health to inform the development, conduct, and dissemination of the research. Please contact Ann-Marie.Creaven@ul.ie about this project.

Title: A social identity approach to internalised stigma

Supervisors: Dr. Aisling O’Donnell (aisling.odonnell@ul.ie) ; Dr. Daragh Bradshaw (daragh.bradshaw@ul.ie)

Project Description: Stigma is the devaluing of a person or group on the basis of some characteristic. People who are the subject of stigma can be thought of as having or acquiring a stigmatised identity; something that labels them but also groups them together with others who share that identity, much like any other social identity. Some stigmatised identities may be otherwise valued (e.g., minority sexual identities) while others may be more difficult to identify with (e.g., chronic illness; overweight and obesity; drug use). Importantly, there are different aspects to stigma: stigmatised people not only perceive that others stigmatise them, but they may anticipate experiencing discrimination if their stigmatised status becomes known, and internalise stigma, where negative stereotypes about the stigmatised identity are accepted and applied to the self. This latter aspect, internalised stigma, has been argued to be most closely related to psychological distress, such as depression and anxiety. When it comes to predicting who will internalise stigma the most, though, social psychology has not had much to say. Most research focuses on individual difference variables such as personality traits and self-esteem in predicting internalised stigma. The proposed PhD project would start to develop a social identity analysis of internalised stigma, investigating factors from the social identity approach to health, such as the (in)compatibility between the stigmatised identity and the person’s pre-existing social identities, and the perceived stability and permeability of stigmatised status.

Title: Multiple Identity Integration: Cognitive Consistency as a Core Motive for Group Identification and Downstream Consequences

Supervisors: Dr Jenny Roth (Jenny.Roth@ul.ie); Paul Maher (Paul.Maher@ul.ie); Dr Andrew Moynihan (Andrew.Moynihan@ul.ie)

Project Description: People usually belong to multiple social groups, which form their social identities. For example, they may be Irish and Catholic or Irish and Protestant, they may be Smoker and Athlete, Vegetarian and Hunter, or Protestant and Unionist. These social identities are perceived to be compatible when characteristics, norms, values, and goals are aligned, or they are perceived to be incompatible with conflicting group characteristics, norms, values, or goals. This project builds upon a cognitive consistency approach to understanding identification with more than one social group (i.e., identity integration) (Loughnane, Roth, & van Tilburg, 2023; Loughnane, Roth, Rauner, & Strack, 2021; Roth, Steffens, & Vignoles, 2018). This approach mainly suggests that identification with social groups and their perceived compatibility are interlinked and driven by people’s motivation for consistency in their cognitions and judgments. Currently we are extending the previous research in several areas:

1. We are exploring conditions (i.e., moderators) of the cognitive consistency approach to understanding identity integration. These conditions include individual differences (neuroticism, preference for consistency, or need for cognitive closure), the relevance of the social groups for the person, or the effects of similarities/differences vs. complementariness/conflict between the groups.
2. We are applying the main principles of the cognitive consistency approach to understand well-being. If people identify with incompatible groups, this may result in cognitive dissonance. As cognitive dissonance is an aversive feeling, we predict that it negatively affects people’s well-being. This line of research extends research on acculturation (Benet- Martinez & Haritatos, 2005) and research on an effect known as the ‘social cure’ (Jetten et al., 2017).

• We are applying the cognitive consistency approach to a variety of domains. Those domains include help-seeking intentions when encountering mental health issues and acculturation of immigrants.

Any student who wishes to work on the project is invited to follow the general idea and shape their specific direction based on their individual interests.

Title: Stigma and psychophysiological responses to stress: A challenge or a threat?

Supervisors: Prof. Siobhán Howard (siobhan.howard@ul.ie); Dr Aisling O’Donnell (aisling.odonnell@ul.ie); Dr Grace McMahon (grace.mcmahon@ul.ie)

Project Description: This PhD project explores how the experience of stigma—being treated unfairly or judged based on aspects of your identity—affects the body’s stress systems. We know from previous research that people who belong to stigmatized groups (such as those living with chronic illness, skin conditions, or unemployment) often report worse health. What’s less clear is how these social experiences influence biological stress responses in real time. The project aims to find out whether people who experience stigma show different physiological reactions—particularly in their cardiovascular system—during stressful social situations. Specifically, it will examine whether stigma leads to what scientists call a “threat response” (which is more harmful to health) or a “challenge response” (which the body can handle better). Understanding this could help explain why stigmatized groups often face higher rates of illness.

To do this, the project brings together two areas of research. The first, led by Dr O’Donnell, shows that stigma is linked to health issues like headaches, insomnia, and digestive problems. The second, led by Professor Howard, focuses on how stress affects the heart and blood pressure and how this predicts long-term disease risk. Dr McMahon’s current work is across these both domains and the supervisory team is well-positioned to supervise a PhD project to success in this area.

Title: The role of Family Focused prison-based interventions to support individuals and families involved.

Supervisors: Dr Anca Minescu (anca.minescu@ul.ie); Dr Daragh Bradshaw (Daragh.bradshaw@ul.ie); Dr Elaine Rodgers (Elaine.M.Rogers@ul.ie); Dr Ann-Christin Posten

Project Description: While recent years has seen an overall decrease in prison populations, there has been a dramatic increase in parental incarceration (The Sentencing Project, 2022). This is of particular concern as parental incarceration is associated with negative social, emotional, behavioural, and educational outcomes for families involved (Wakefield, 2022). Previous studies indicate that family focused interventions can reduce negative outcomes. Consequently, there has been an increase in prison-based interventions to support families involved.  However, many of these interventions are being conducted isolation and without robust evaluation (Bradshaw et al., 2021). The current project aims to map and synthesise existing efforts to support families, as well as evaluate the impact, and implementation of specific family focused prison-based support initiatives. We are seeking a student with an interest in qualitative, quantitative, and systematic review methods.

Title: Beyond Mood: Advancing our Understanding of Cognition and Everyday Functioning in Depression

Supervisors: Dr Elayne Ahern (Elayne.Ahern@ul.ie ) ; Dr Aoife Whiston (Aoife.Whiston@ul.ie ) ; Professor Dónal G. Fortune (Donal.Fortune@ul.ie)

Project Description: Depression is a prevalent, debilitating mental health condition, often recurrent, and contributes to sustained difficulties in everyday functioning. However, not everyone that experiences depressive symptoms will experience the same profile of symptoms or impacts.

There is growing interest in understanding the risk mechanisms that underlie the differing profiles (and course) of depression to inform more targeted approaches to prevention and treatment efforts. Emerging evidence suggests that weaknesses in both emotional (e.g., rumination) and non- emotional cognitive function (e.g., attention, memory, executive function) play a central role in initial onset and in sustained risk for depression. Nonetheless, we still lack a clear understanding of the relative contribution of these risk factors and how they interact in the context of daily life to contribute to clinical and functional outcomes.

The aim of this PhD is to advance our understanding of how cognitive factors interact and shape the complex profile of depressive symptoms and everyday functional impairment in individuals at risk for depression. The PhD candidate will develop a programme of research to examine how cognitive and contributing risk processes (e.g., sleep disturbances, stress reactivity) are linked to depression and more broadly to real-world functioning associated with depression. They will join a newly established clinical psychology research lab and will have the opportunity to contribute to a collaborative and dynamic research environment, working alongside a team investigating how mental health conditions emerge, are maintained, and can be better understood and addressed using a range of methodologies, including evidence synthesis, large-scale data analysis, and real-time empirical studies of psychological processes.

Title: Feeling trusted – effects on mental health and well-being

Supervisors: Dr Ann-Christin Posten (ann-christin.posten@ul.ie) ; Dr Elayne Ahern ( elayne.ahern@ul.ie)

Project Description: Trust generally brings positive mental effects, as it allows individuals to feel safe in relationships and environments, reducing the need to constantly assess threats or motives. These benefits can be found on the physiological, emotional, cognitive, and motivational level, and typically come with an improved overall well-being. However, building trust is a complex endeavour that is influenced by many variables. In particular, increasing trust in institutions and authorities (e.g., states, governments) is difficult. Recent research shows that not only experiencing trust, but also the feeling of being trusted comes with substantial positive effects, such as increased levels of interpersonal cooperation. Thus, being the recipient of someone’s trust also benefits relationships and could, hence, also hold positive effects on the individual’s well-being and mental health. To date, this is notably understudied.

This PhD scholarship proposal aims to investigate the effects of feeling trusted on emotional, cognitive, and/or motivational reactions and aims to derive a deeper understanding on how an individual’s well-being and mental health is affected by the feeling of being trusted. Thereby, we aim to investigate if people who experience that others (e.g., their school, government, parents, peers) trust them benefit as an individual. As empirical data is still scarce, this research will also investigate potential adverse effects. Feeling trusted often entails the burden of responsibility, which may be challenging for individuals with limited mental health resources to manage. Importantly, expressing trust is an intentional act that can be guided by both individuals and institutions. Understanding how expressed trust influences well-being may inform future campaigns aimed at enhancing psychological and physiological health.

Title: An evaluation of a school-based intercultural awareness intervention

Supervisors: Dr Sarah Jay (sarah.jay@ul.ie) ;Dr Daragh Bradshaw (daragh.bradshaw@ul.ie) ; Dr Anca Minescu

Project Description: The Traveller community face unacceptably high levels of discrimination and exclusion that are reflected in their poor outcomes in education, housing, employment and health (ESRI, 2017). Attempts to challenge structural barriers and breakdown negative stereotypes about Travellers include the Traveller Culture and History in Education Bill (2018) which commits to embed opportunities for all of Irelands children and young people to learn about Traveller culture, identity and history in the early childhood, primary and post-primary school curriculum.

This project is a partnership with Kids Own publishing who work with artists and children to develop books for children, and with teachers to create teaching resources to support the use of these books. Drawing on recommendations made in the POLROM anti-gypsyism Toolkit (Kende, Lášticová, Minescu, Lantos, & O’Connor, 2020) this project will evaluate the effectiveness of Kids Own teaching resource and books made with Traveller and Roma children which aim to develop intercultural awareness among school pupils and youth groups. The PhD candidate will work up a protocol and develop a systematic review of literature documenting similar interventions and conduct quantitative and qualitative empirical studies with participating groups, teachers and young people.

Title: Exploring Moral Identity in Leadership: Foundations for Understanding Collective Prosocial Motivation

Supervisors: Elaine L. Kinsella (Elaine.Kinsella@ul.ie) ;second supervisor to be confirmed

Project Description: This PhD project investigates how leaders are perceived as moral exemplars and how they shape a shared sense of group-based moral identity. It will explore how such identities motivate collective forms of prosocial behaviour, including altruism, cooperation, and civic engagement.

The project will employ mixed methods (qualitative, quantitative, and/or experimental), with flexibility to tailor design and context (e.g., educational, civic, or organisational settings) in line with the PhD student’s background and interests.

This PhD forms part of a broader research programme on identity-based leadership (e.g., Haslam, Reicher, & Platow, 2020; Steffens et al., 2014) and moral motivation (e.g., Aquino & Reed, 2002). It will focus on empirical and methodological groundwork, providing critical insight into the social and psychological processes linking identity leadership and collective moral behaviour, while leaving room for future theoretical development at a larger scale

Title: Supporting Disabled Parents

Supervisors: Dr Elaine Rogers (Elaine.M.Rogers@ul.ie), Professor Dónal G. Fortune (Donal.Fortune@ul.ie); Daragh Bradshaw (daragh.bradshaw@ul.ie)

Project Description: Disabled women have children at a rate similar to non-disabled peers, however they are often invisible in policy (Van Havermaet et al., 2021).

The WHO/World Bank 2011 report on disability estimates that about 15% of the global population live with some form of disability, of whom 2 – 4 % experience significant difficulties in functioning. 1 in 10 women of reproductive age has a disability (Tarasoff et al., 2020), with similar proportions of women with and without disabilities reporting a pregnancy, with variation of rates with complexity of disability (Horner-Johnson et al., 2016).

Parenthood is an arena in which disabled people encounter prejudice, stigma, and systemic bias (Lightfoot, Laliberte, Cho, 2017; Molden, 2014). Internationally, disabled parents are disproportionately represented in care proceedings around the world. Parents with intellectual disability are more likely to be involved in child protection investigations and more like to lose custody of their children than any other group of parents (Lightfoot & DeZelar, 2016; Booth & Booth, 2005). Across disabilities (Diamanti et al., 2021; Ferrara et al., 2023), women with disabilities continue to experience barriers in accessing obstetric care (Mitra et al., 2016; Tarrasoff et al., 2020).

The PhD candidate will develop a programme of research including exploring 1) the role of peer support for disabled parents and 2) the role of peer support for professionals working with disabled parents. Research methods will include both quantitative and qualitative approaches and will be underpinned by inclusive practices, disability justice perspectives, and implementation science.

The candidate will have to opportunity to join an existing research programme and collaborate with national and international colleagues throughout this project. The PhD is supervised by Dr Elaine Rogers and Professor Donal Fortune.

Title: Breaking the Dark Triad

Supervisors: Professor Eric R. Igou (Eric.Igou@ul.ie), Associate Professor Andrew Moynihan (Andrew Moynihan@ul.ie)

Project Description: This project will examine the impact of context on a set of negative traits referred to as the "dark triad". These sub-clinical (i.e., not clinical) traits of Machiavellianism, Narcissism, and Psychopathy are described as related traits, forming the "dark triad" (Jones & Paulhus, 2014; Paulhus, 2002). The specific feature of these traits is that individuals who score high in them tend to have limited empathy, are highly self-focused, and are strategic in gaining or maintaining influence and power over others. The general idea of this project is that particular primes, whether informational (e.g., person primes) or affective (e.g., self-transcendent emotions as primes), reduce or increase these tendencies, resulting in lower or higher scores on the scales that measure the "dark triad" (Jones & Paulhus, 2014). The project will then examine the underlying psychological processes that explain the effects of contextual primes on dark triad tendencies. It will build on literature on context effects (e.g., assimilation vs. contrast effects) and on existential psychology (e.g., sense of meaning in life).

Advert information