PHD POSITION 100 %

Start of employment 1 March 2025, or upon agreement, temporary
The PhD student will be based at OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, St. Gallen, and embedded into the doctoral school of the University of Zurich (UZH), Department of Psychology, Clinical Intervention and Global Mental Health.
We are looking for someone with an interest in practice-oriented and applied research to join a project financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF): “Beyond the barriers: A digital screening tool to promote communication and help-seeking for the mental health of men in the primary care setting”.
Significant gender-related disparities for mental health suggest that men often show poorer outcomes and reduced help-seeking of professional support. By uncovering gender-specific biases and barriers to patient help-seeking and communication (e.g., stereotypical concepts and social norms, stigma, mental health literacy), this knowledge can be directly implemented in clinical practice to improve screening procedures for men’s mental health. We therefore aim to develop and evaluate a digital tool for screening the mental health of men in the primary care setting.
This is a 3-year, mixed-methods project, conducted in German-speaking Switzerland. A quantitative survey will assess gender differences in mental health and help-seeking behaviour. A qualitative study, consisting of interviews and focus groups, will examine the lived experience of mental health help-seeking, associated barriers and facilitators, and design input on the digital tool. The findings will inform the gender-sensitive development of the digital screening tool for men’s mental health.

• Conducting a literature review on the specific needs, barriers, and facilitators related to men’s mental health and help-seeking behaviour.
• Preparation, recruitment, and data collection on the quantitative questionnaire survey.
• Lead the qualitative study: Development of qualitative interview and focus group guides, participant re-cruitment, conducting the interviews and focus groups, transcription and analysis (with the team).
• Assisting the project postdoc in the final evaluation study for the digital screening tool (e.g., preparation, recruitment).
• Co-supervision of master students and interns on the project (together with project lead).