King's College London

About Us

This is an exciting opportunity to join the Health Psychology Section, part of the School of Mental Health & Psychological Sciences at King’s College London. The School is part of the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience (IoPPN), focusing on understanding the psychological, social, and behavioural factors that influence mental health and well-being. The School promotes cutting-edge research and translation into practice, addressing a wide range of mental health challenges.

The Health Psychology Section is home to pioneering research in health behaviors, patient outcomes, and interventions to improve mental and physical health. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work alongside leading academics and researchers in the field, contributing to impactful studies aimed at enhancing the psychological care of patients across different health settings. You will work closely with an experienced research team, which includes postdoctoral researchers, PhD students, and clinical experts. 

About The Role

We are looking to appoint a Research Assistant to join the Health Psychology Group within the Department of Psychology at King’s College London. This is a full-time, fixed-term position for 2 years, with potential opportunities to transition into a longer-term role or pursue further academic development, such as a PhD, within the same research team.

The successful candidate will work closely with Dr Lauren Heathcote and her research team, contributing to innovative research aimed at developing and testing behavioural interventions that enhance mental and physical health outcomes for cancer survivors. This role will require in-person attendance at Guy’s Hospital for at least two days per week, alongside in-person participant recruitment at a pediatric cancer clinic in the Greater London area for one day per week. Two additional days can be worked flexibly, including from home.

The Research Assistant will be involved in two key research projects:

1. Year 1: Supporting a Medical Research Foundation-funded Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) for a new digital mindset intervention called EMBody (Exploring Mindsets about the Body), targeting childhood cancer survivors aged 16-25. The role will include participant recruitment, coordinating with NHS clinics and charity partners, and assisting with data collection. There will also be opportunities to co-author peer-reviewed publications based on the research findings.
2. Year 2: Supporting an RCT for an interoceptive heartbeat-training intervention, funded by the Wellcome Mental Health Award, aimed at reducing anxiety in breast cancer survivors. This project involves collaboration with Postdocs specializing in neuroimaging and psychology.

Additional responsibilities will include recruiting participants, managing data collection and storage, and supporting grant applications. The Research Assistant will also engage in a variety of lab activities, including organizing lab meetings, journal clubs, and social events. The role will provide exposure to diverse areas of research on body mindsets, mind-body mechanisms, and mental health in individuals with chronic pain.

This role offers the opportunity to engage in co-design activities with patient advisory partners and charities, as well as contributing to public engagement through science communication, including blogs and social media outreach.

The Health Psychology Section at King’s College London has played a pivotal role in advancing Health Psychology in the UK and continues to drive impactful research in long-term condition management and intervention development.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 30/11/2026.

About You

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. Degree in Psychology, Neuroscience, or related degree.
2. Excellent organizational and project management skills.
3. Motivated and driven to improve the lives of people diagnosed with cancer.
4. Excellent interpersonal communication and team-working skills. 
5. Self-motivated, proactive and takes initiative to problem-solve.

Desirable criteria

1. Masters Degree in Psychology, Health Psychology, Clinical Neuroscience, or a related degree.
2. Experience of conducting research within an NHS setting, particularly participant recruitment.
3. Experience working with vulnerable populations or families impacted by cancer.
4. Experience of with NHS ethics approvals. 
5. Experience with Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) or co-design.
6. Experience with psychophysiology or neuroimaging methods. 

Downloading a copy of our Job Description 

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information 

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's. We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

Interviews are due to be held in late October or early November 2024.

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.