GW4 BioMed2 MRC DTP PhD project: Parental transmission of substance use: exploring mechanisms and informing intervention

This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding from the GW4 BioMed2 MRC Doctoral Training Partnership which is offering up to 21 studentships for entry in September 2025.

The DTP brings together the Universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter to develop the next generation of biomedical researchers. Students will have access to the combined research strengths, training expertise and resources of the four research-intensive universities. More information may be found on the DTP’s website.

Supervisory Team:

Dr Lindsey Hines (Lead), University of Bath, Department of Psychology

Dr Hannah Sallis, University of Bristol, Medical School

Dr Charlotte Dack, University of Bath,  Department of Psychology

Dr Jon Heron,  University of Bristol, Medical School

The Project: 

Reducing substance use is a key goal within public health. Recent work has shown that a strong predictor of adolescent substance use is the substance use of their parents. The student will use longitudinal data to answer the question of whether – and how – substance use behaviours passed from parents to their children. In doing so they will develop skills including population and genetic epidemiology, data analysis, and qualitative interviewing and analysis.

Understanding what causes mental health disorders is one of the key issues in health research. If we can understand the causes of problems, we can start to address them before they arise. People with mental health problems are likely to have poorer socioeconomic outcomes and are likely to have worse physical health in their lives. Consequently, reducing the development of mental health problems has the potential for wide-ranging effects.

One risk factor for the development of mental health problems is substance use (particularly use of alcohol and cannabis) during adolescence. Reducing substance use is an important goal within public health, and there is focus on adolescence as we understand how critical this period is for brain development, social development, and education outcomes.

Recent work has shown that a predictor of adolescent substance use is the substance use of their parents, which could indicate that working with parents is a viable route to reduce substance use in their offspring. However, we still don’t fully understand the extent to which substance use may be affected directly by the genetic information we receive from our parents, or by aspects of our environment such as parenting behaviours.

The key question in this project will be: are substance use behaviours passed from parents to their children? And could we intervene to reduce substance use in future generations?

We will use advanced statistical analysis of longitudinal cohort data (the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children – ALSPAC) and intergenerational design to understand how behaviour in one generation can impact health in the next generation, and qualitative interviews to understand the views of parents on acceptability of behaviour change interventions focussed on their substance use.

In answering this question, the student will develop expertise in a broad of skills that are relevant for understanding health and behaviour, and that are translatable into future careers in clinical psychology, data analysis, research, and other health and data related careers:

• Understanding of population health and epidemiology

• Advanced longitudinal data analysis

• Genetic analysis

• Qualitative methodology

• Use of statistical analysis programmes (Stata, R)

• Participatory research and co-design

The project will be based between the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, and the Centre for Academic Mental Health at the University of Bristol. There is scope to develop the research question and focus of the work in different directions. For example, the student could select to focus on either parent substance use disorder, or non-disordered use at a general population level. There is choice in which substances to focus on, as the work is equally relevant for alcohol use, tobacco use, and illicit drug use. There is also opportunity to identify and include further datasets (beyond ALSPAC) in the work if the student is interested in replicating findings, or if they have new ideas to address the question. The student will be expected to design their own Patient and Participant Involvement work when developing the study, and will be able to access existing advisory groups within both Universities.

In order to understand different mechanisms of transmission the student will be able to explore genetic transmission, using data on genetic variance to parse out the effects due to genes, and the effects due to environment (Dr Hannah Sallis, Bristol), and to explore the effect of parenting behaviours on adolescent substance use using negative control design and epidemiological methods (Dr Lindsey Hines, Bath/Dr Jon Heron, Bristol).

The work will have a focus on utility for intervention, and there is a need to explore the acceptability of behaviour change amongst parents (Dr Charlotte Dack, Bath). The student will be supported to conduct a qualitative study to explore this question, and can further develop the topic guide to explore other questions that arise from the project.

Requirements:

Applicants must have obtained, or be expected to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class UK Honours degree, or the equivalent qualifications gained outside the UK, in an area appropriate to the skills requirements of the project. Applicants with a lower second class will only be considered if they also have a Master’s degree. Academic qualifications are considered alongside significant relevant non-academic experience.

Non-UK applicants will also be required to have met the English language entry requirements of the University of Bath.

Enquiries and Applications:

Informal enquiries are welcomed and should be directed to Dr Lindsey Hines on email address [email protected].

Formal applications must be submitted direct to the GW4 BioMed2 DTP using their online application form: GW4 BioMed MRC DTP – GW4 BioMed MRC DTP