Assistant Researcher

University of Kansas
United States, Kansas, Lawrence
1450 Jayhawk Boulevard (Show on map)
Jan 30, 2025
Position Overview The Center for the Advancement of Research on Eating Behaviors (CARE) has 1 opening for an Assistant Researcher to help coordinate clinical trials and basic science research in eating disorders. The Assistant Researcher will work closely with Dr. Kelsie Forbush, PI and CARE Director, and Dr. Angeline Bottera, CARE Associate Director, and a team of local and international researchers. Duties will include conducting literature searches, writing IRB submissions and amendments, overseeing participant recruitment and enrollment, participant testing using structured clinical interviews, coordinating team meetings and laboratory schedules, preliminary basic data analyses, data cleaning, and data management using REDCap software. Other responsibilities will include supervising undergraduate research assistants and paid staff, assisting with extramural and intramural grant submissions, maintaining lab records and processes, and assisting with publications. The Assistant Researcher will assist the PI in upholding high ethical standards, regulatory compliance, and confidentiality of sensitive data and open-science reporting practices. The Assistant Researcher will work on treatment-centered studies that are housed in the COPE (Center for Overcoming Problem Eating) branch of CARE, with a focus on BEST-U, an NIH-funded clinical trial testing a mobile a mobile app based guided self-help Cognitive Behavioral Therapy intervention for college students with binge-spectrum eating disorder. The Assistant Researcher will also work on a treatment trial aimed at testing the preliminary efficacy, feasibility, and acceptability of the Biobehavioral Rhythm Intervention for Targeting binge Eating and Restriction (BRITER). BRITER is a highly novel 10-week mobile health treatment for binge eating that directly targets the regulation of circadian and daily appetitive rhythms by integrating sleep medicine and circadian rhythm regulation techniques into eating disorder treatment. STAR: An NIH-funded clinical trial designed to develop a mobile health app that uses machine learning to predict likelihood of relapse in adolescents who are recovering from anorexia nervosa. Military Mental Health Study: Department of Defense-funded research that is designed to test a new screening tool for eating disorders and related mental health conditions in a nationally representative sample of active-duty military members. EPSI ChAT: A study designed to test and validate a self-report questionnaire assessing eating and feeding disorders in youth and adolescents. The research assistant would have the opportunity to conduct independent research utilizing existing datasets, including (but not limited to) a longitudinal dataset of over 30,000 patients with eating disorders in collaboration with Recovery Record, Inc. and a five-wave longitudinal study of over 350 community-recruited adults with eating disorders. Finally, our center has close relationships with numerous local and national eating disorder treatment centers, including Children's Mercy - Kansas City and Eating Recovery Center, making this an ideal position for someone who is interested in graduate or medical school. This position will be fully on-site in Lawrence, Kansas. Lawrence is a vibrant community that offers numerous sporting, cultural, shopping, and educational opportunities. We are also located 25 to 45 minutes from metropolitan Kansas City, with a wide range of professional sports, arts, music, food, cultural, and shopping options. The start date for this position is anticipated to be Thursday, May 01, 2025, but is negotiable through Monday, June 02, 2025. Job Description 50% Supervision, Project Management, and Administrative Support: Train undergraduate students on data entry, lab policies, and procedures; provide oversight of undergraduate and paid research assistants to ensure timely completion of tasks and training on research tasks Develop laboratory schedules for undergraduate students Interview potential undergraduate research assistants Coordinate team meetings and agendas, take notes, and follow-up on team member task completion Develop and maintain IRB protocols, submit IRB amendments, and create reports of new information when applicable Assist with preparation of grants, progress reports, and publications Ensure team deadlines are met and keep track of project metrics using Asana and REDCap 30% Data Reporting, Management, and Statistical Analysis: Run weekly and monthly reports to update PI and team regarding recruitment and enrollment targets Assist with the preparation of reports for the data safety monitoring board, yearly progress reports, and recruitment milestones for funding organization Perform simple statistical analyses as needed using SPSS and R Oversee recruitment and enrollment flow through our protocols using REDCap Coordinating data entry with team of undergraduate research assistants Ensure data are saved and kept secure 20% Psychological Testing: Conduct semi-structured clinical interviews to generate mental health diagnoses; conduct semi-structured qualitative interviews to gather feedback from stakeholders Administer tests of neurocognition and self-report measures of psychopathology Screen participants for inclusion/exclusion criteria using diagnostic measures Participate in consensus meetings and present cases to the team Position Requirements This position will be fully on-site at: Wakarusa Research Facility; 785-864-8826 and Dole Human Development Center; 785-864-8830 Required Qualifications Bachelor's degree in psychology, public health, epidemiology, educational psychology, social work, counseling, or related field by the start date. Experience as a research assistant or technician in a research laboratory as evidenced by application materials. Preferred Qualifications Master's degree in psychology, public health, epidemiology, educational psychology, social work, counseling, or related field. Coursework or prior training in clinical psychology or behavioral health research setting. Experience in laboratory management or administration as demonstrated in application materials. Experience recruiting, screening, and testing participants in research studies, as demonstrated in application materials. Proficient computer knowledge to interface with a variety of database, statistical, and imaging task and processing software, such as SPSS, SAS, R, Qualtrics, REDCap, and Linux, as demonstrated in application materials. Demonstrated experience working to a deadline, as evidenced in application materials. Demonstrated experience with flexibility and change in a fast-paced environment, as well as working successfully both independently and with a team as evidenced in application materials. Demonstrated experience working with a range of cultures, communities, and body sizes, including people with eating disorders, obesity, and related mental-health conditions as evidenced in application materials. Additional Candidate Instructions A complete application consists of: Resume/CV Cover letter explaining how you meet the required qualifications Three references from academic mentors Apply online. Application review begins Wednesday, February 19, 2025, and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants are identified. Contact Information to Applicants Wulfe Wulfemeyer; wulfe@ku.edu Advertised Salary Range $37,000 - $42,000 Work Schedule M-F; 9-5 Application Review Begins Wednesday February 19, 2025 Anticipated Start Date Thursday May 1, 2025