Any Recommendations for Particular Programs?

[fiinch]

Good morning all!

Just wanted to reach out to the wealth of knowledge here, as I'm having a hard time finding prospective POIs for my second attempt at PhD applications. I am glad for the second round, as I've really developed more experience and specificity in my research goals.

I am interested in researching the interaction between veterans' mental health and veteran criminality. I was recently picked up for publication in a US Naval Institute, peer-reviewed journal, and I wrote about this very subject. I have found that many of the author's of my referenced articles are professors in Psychiatry, not Psychology.

Can anyone here recommend a program that may be a good fit? I have a "working list in progress," but the closest matches are usually forensic or veteran's mental health, rather than both. I am open to broadening my research, but not too far. How do you navigate applications when you may not perfectly match up with a POIs current projects, but feel that your interests can build off their foundation, albeit in a new direction?

Thanks for any and all insight!

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[deleted343839]

You could pursue those interests in several fields, not all of them necessarily clinical (eg, criminology). The training should be a good fit with your eventual career goals (ie, research, teaching, practice, etc.) and at least somewhat related your content interests. Are you mainly interested in an academic career?

In clinical psychology we tend not to hyperspecialize during doctoral training because it's important to get a solid generalist foundation. It's more expected that you'll develop a highly specific program of research as you transition to post-doc and faculty roles. I would argue that you're better off attending a strong Ph.D. program with less of a content fit than a program that matches your interests exactly but offers weaker training overall.

For navigating the application process, you should think broadly about how you could build on a faculty member's projects. If you're talking with a faculty member who studies PTSD in veterans, for example, maybe you could look at not just criminal behavior in this population but also things like antisocial attitudes and behaviors, interpersonal violence, etc. Be creative, rather than rigid, when thinking about your interests.

Keep in mind that few of us are doing today exactly what we thought we'd be doing when we applied to graduate school. Careers take winding and unpredictable paths so make sure that whatever training you pursue interests you in other ways, too.

 

[fiinch]

You could pursue those interests in several fields, not all of them necessarily clinical (eg, criminology). The training should be a good fit with your eventual career goals (ie, research, teaching, practice, etc.) and at least somewhat related your content interests. Are you mainly interested in an academic career?

In clinical psychology we tend not to hyperspecialize during doctoral training because it's important to get a solid generalist foundation. It's more expected that you'll develop a highly specific program of research as you transition to post-doc and faculty roles. I would argue that you're better off attending a strong Ph.D. program with less of a content fit than a program that matches your interests exactly but offers weaker training overall.

For navigating the application process, you should think broadly about how you could build on a faculty member's projects. If you're talking with a faculty member who studies PTSD in veterans, for example, maybe you could look at not just criminal behavior in this population but also things like antisocial attitudes and behaviors, interpersonal violence, etc. Be creative, rather than rigid, when thinking about your interests.

Keep in mind that few of us are doing today exactly what we thought we'd be doing when we applied to graduate school. Careers take winding and unpredictable paths so make sure that whatever training you pursue interests you in other ways, too.

Thank you very much for your response! This is good advice--I am planning on practicing in the VA after I'm licensed, if all goes well. I am in the military now, and I am particularly concerned with the transitioning process for veterans. There are representatives now within the VA that act as liaisons for veterans in the criminal justice system, and often times, the alternative sentencing offered to veterans convicted of misdemeanor crimes requires psychological counseling in lieu of jail time. I would love to end up somewhere in the spectrum of resources.

I will look more closely at broadening my research interests. Maladaptive behaviors, including interpersonal violence and dissociation, are all tied to veteran criminality (as you pointed out) so I will start there. This is my naivety talking, but, how does one take these more broad interests and turn them into a statement of purpose? I wouldn't think just saying "researching veteran interpersonal violence" would be enough....? Do I have to better turn that into a research question? IE "What is the prevalence of interpersonal violence in post-OIE/OEF veterans?" or something along those lines?

 

[deleted343839]

You're coming in with a great background for this work. Thank you for your service.

I don't think your research questions need to be very specific. However, think about how to frame your interests as psychological research questions. Maybe you want to look at how veterans' psychological risk and resilience factors influence the likelihood of violence and antisocial behavior, for instance. Or maybe you want to understand how the transition back to the community introduces or reduces risks of interpersonal violence. Just think of the main concepts that interest you and branch off of those as you brainstorm so that you will have some ideas to tweak your statement for each application. Don't put yourself in too tight a box.

Make sure to talk about your experience and knowledge of the transitioning process in your statement so that whoever reads it will have an idea of where you're coming from. We like great ideas, but we also like the interesting people behind them.

 

[fiinch]

You're coming in with a great background for this work. Thank you for your service.

I don't think your research questions need to be very specific. However, think about how to frame your interests as psychological research questions. Maybe you want to look at how veterans' psychological risk and resilience factors influence the likelihood of violence and antisocial behavior, for instance. Or maybe you want to understand how the transition back to the community introduces or reduces risks of interpersonal violence. Just think of the main concepts that interest you and branch off of those as you brainstorm so that you will have some ideas to tweak your statement for each application. Don't put yourself in too tight a box.

Make sure to talk about your experience and knowledge of the transitioning process in your statement so that whoever reads it will have an idea of where you're coming from. We like great ideas, but we also like the interesting people behind them.

Thank you so much for your support, MamaPhD. I'm very honored to serve; it's been one of the most rewarding experiences to wear the uniform!

I will definitely heed all of your great advice. I know my interests teeter on the precipice of public health, and even criminology, so refocusing the lens on psychological factors is important! I have a working list at my desk now, and I'm jotting down your great ideas as starting points. Hopefully, I can find a research focus that fuses my varied interests, and eventually get into a great program!

Be well!