Research Project Associates
Michelle J. Collins, B.A. — Lab Manager
Michelle Collins completed her B.A. in Psychology from Simon Fraser University in 2003 and has worked in the Psychology department for five years as a research assistant and teaching assistant for numerous courses, including Introduction to Law and Psychology and Psychology of Violent Crime. In her current role as lab manager, Michelle is responsible for the general oversight of all lab activities and assists with the design of research studies, training of research assistants for data collection, as well as the preparation of funding applications. She is the project coordinator for a research study investigating dynamic risk factors for violence, victimization, and suicide/self-harm behaviors among civil psychiatric patients and mentally disordered offenders, and she served as a research assistant from 2006 to 2009 for an international research program aimed at the reduction of risk for multiple adverse outcomes among mentally disordered persons. In addition to her role as Lab Manager, Michelle also acts as Study Manager for Dr. Jodi Viljoen’s project examining mental health, risks, and needs of youth on probation, and is employed with BC Mental Health & Addiction Services as a research assistant at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital. In this capacity, she currently is managing a research project examining the process and outcomes of decentralizing psychiatric services following the closure of British Columbia’s only tertiary psychiatric hospital, and also served as a committee member from 2006 to 2009 for the implementation of the Short-Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability (START) throughout the BC Forensic Psychiatric Services Commission.
Catherine M. Wilson, M.A., Ph.D. student
Catherine Wilson is a Ph.D. student in the Experimental stream of the Law and Psychology program. She completed a Bachelor of Science, Honours in 2003 under the supervision of Dr. Craig Bennell at Carleton University. Catherine completed her M.A. in 2006 at Simon Fraser University under the supervision of Dr. Stephen Hart. Her thesis examined the impact of variable risk factor information on violence risk judgments by mental health professionals. Catherine’s interests include psychopathy, mental disorder and violence, and violence risk assessment and management. Over the past few years, Catherine has studied various forms of violent behaviors, such as sexual violence (with Dr. Stephen Hart) and violence within the educational system (with Dr. Kevin Douglas). For her dissertation, Catherine is interested in investigating the dynamic risk factors associated with inpatient violence in both civil and forensic psychiatric populations. Catherine is funded by a Michael Smith Foundation/BC Medical Services Foundation Junior Research Trainee Award (http://www.msfhr.org/) and by a fellowship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/).
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Past Project Associates:
Sarah L. Desmarais, Ph. D. — Past Project Manager for MSFHR Team Start-Up Grant
