Qualitative Research Opportunity with USC Maternal Lab

The USC Maternal Cannabis Lab is looking for students to support coding and analysis on the following qualitative research projects:

1. The experience of females who use nicotine and cannabis is limited, despite the unique health consequences these substances pose for females, and the observed higher rates of use of certain products in this population. As tobacco and cannabis trends rapidly evolve and females report increased use, it is critical to examine the individual and social contexts that contribute to why and how females use nicotine and cannabis. This project uses qualitative interviews (n = 30) to accurately capture young adult female use motivations and patterns of nicotine and cannabis use that are often limited in quantitative studies.

2. Cannabis is the most commonly used substance during pregnancy. Concerns that cannabis may interfere with fetal neurodevelopment resulted in the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists to recommend that people refrain from cannabis during pregnancy. With the increased exposure to unsupported health claims from cannabis retailers and incomplete information about cannabis safety from maternal health stakeholders more information is urgently needed. This project uses qualitative interviews (n = 20) to understand the social environments that contribute to reducing the perceived risks of cannabis use during pregnancy and its impact on maternal health disparities among a cohort of Latina women.

3. Pregnant people are increasingly using cannabis for its perceived health benefits such as to self-treat nausea and pain. At the same time, there is a lack of communication from health providers surrounding cannabis use during pregnancy, which people may perceive as an indication that adverse outcomes of cannabis use during pregnancy are not significant. We conducted qualitative interviews with clinicians (n = 32) to document their perceptions and knowledge of cannabis use and use patterns that may influence the consequences of cannabis use during pregnancy, including exacerbating existing maternal health disparities.

4. Little is known about the knowledge held and disseminated by cannabis professionals regarding use of cannabis in pregnancy. Unsupported health claims from cannabis retailers may contribute to reducing the perceived risks of cannabis use during pregnancy. We conducted qualitative interviews with cannabis retailers (e.g., adult-use licensed and unlicensed retailers, and “budtenders” and “medical providers” who often offer point-of-sale advice but have no medical training) and stakeholders in the cannabis business (n = 15) to learn more about their awareness of maternal cannabis use and discussion with clients.

Necessary competencies:

• Previous experience with qualitative coding and/ or academic experience with graduate-level qualitative coursework
• Familiarity with qualitative coding software (i.e., ATLAS.ti, NVivo, Dedoose)
• Familiarity with maternal cannabis and/ or tobacco literature
• Willingness to expand theoretical and methodological knowledge
• Strong communication skills
• 4-6 hours/ week minimum
• Ability to work well within a team

Benefits:

• Research units (PI is willing to support units before Fall semester add deadline on 9/13)
• Strong letter of recommendation (pending performance evaluation)
• Working with a motivated team of staff members, undergraduate, and graduate students

If interested, please indicate the project of interest and email a CV/ cover letter to Erin Gould: ering@usc.edu

Join the Rebel Research Group

The REBEL Research Group is looking for Student Research Assistants! Work on clinical and field studies examining the role of emotional factors that influence substance use, as well as other behaviors that impact health.

Opportunities available in:

Population Studies

• Support REBEL’s longitudinal prospective cohort studies
• Build and test surveys in REDCap
• Support data collection in high schools
• Analyze data and develop reports of key findings
• Review literature on emerging topic in tobacco/nicotine research

Clinical Studies

•  Lead 3-hr-long laboratory sessions with participants who self-administer nicotine pouches
• Assist in participant recruitment and retention
• Transcribe participant interviews
• Create and manage study materials
• Identify survey measures

Eligibility

• Commitment for a minimum of 2 consecutive semesters
• Availability of 8-10 hrs per week
• Current USC student
• Available as part of a HP 290/490 Course, paid through Federal Work Study (if eligible), or on a volunteer basis

Find more information and apply: http://rebelresearch.usc.edu/join-our-team

USC Undergraduate Research Associate Program – Recruiting Two Undergraduate Research Associates for a Cannabis and Health Among Young Adults Study

We are recruiting two undergraduate student researchers to participate in a mixed-methods study of longitudinal cannabis use and other substance use among cohorts of young adult cannabis users collected both before and after legalization in California (i.e., the Cannabis Health and Young Adults Study). As psychedelic use, including mushrooms (i.e., psilocybin), LSD, MDMA, and ketamine has increased among emerging adults (EA) in recent years, its co-use with cannabis use is an emerging area of inquiry given the high prevalence of both. Qualitative studies that explore psychedelic use and co-use with cannabis among EA can inform understandings about the potential public health risks associated with use. For this study, students will support qualitative coding of interviews about cannabis and psychedelic co-use to inform our understanding of this specific type of poly substance use for young adults. Thirty cannabis-using EA (ages 26-34) who reported a history of psychedelic use completed semi-structured qualitative interviews in 2022-2023 in Los Angeles, which included questions probing practices, rituals, and motives and trajectory of psychedelic use. Thematic analysis will be used to identify major themes and provide a framework for understanding different aspects of cannabis and psychedelic co-use experiences among EA. This data will be integrated with quantitative data collected simultaneously with the interviews to create a “full picture” of cannabis and psychedelic use for this cohort. In this study, there are 366 cannabis-using young adults at baseline in 2014, who are followed for 8 waves (wave 8 in 2022-2023, n=240). There is a data collected at each wave regarding their cannabis and other substance use and their co-use or co-administration with these substances. Students will learn how to analyze and integrate this data to fully draw upon the strengths of mixed-methods research. Student researchers will also have the opportunity to participate on other ongoing data analyses in the larger study, including examination of the trajectory of ‘controlled use of cannabis’ over time. Student researchers may also have the opportunity to support analysis and dissemination of other research questions. For instance, another analysis from the CHAYA study aims to examine the role of ethnic/racial identity (i.e., commitment to one’s identity vs. exploration of identity) as risk or protective factors in cannabis use for these young adults. Students may get involved in supporting literature review, conceptualization, analysis/interpretation, and ultimately dissemination as part of their research experience. For more information on the project, please visit www.chayala.org.

Eligible undergraduate student researchers must be enrolled in at least 12 units in the Fall 2024 and/or Spring 2025 semesters. Selected students will be meet with the investigators prior to the fall to ensure good fit with the project structure and content and to identify learning goals to assess whether the student will benefit academically from the experience. Each student will be supervised by a faculty member on the project and will meet with one or both faculty on a biweekly basis (and additionally as needed) for a 1-hour meeting to check-in around ongoing goals, progress on tasks, and topics of professional development (e.g., different careers in psychology, applying to graduate school, developing a CV, qualitative and quantitative analysis methods, preparing a poster for presentation). Students will also participate in biweekly data meetings where they will interact with other members of the larger research teams from USC and other partner institutions. Students will have the opportunity to collaborate with each on research tasks and the larger project, as well as with staff and collaborators at CHLA, USC, and other institutions. Students will also be invited to and encouraged to attend the myriad training opportunities offered through USC and CHLA. For example, students may have the opportunity to attend retreats through the Institute of Addiction Science and present at the research conference. CHLA’s Saban Research Institute also offers frequent training on research methods, ethics, and clinical research, which may be of interest to students. Through these experiences, students will gain vital exposure to and experience the nuances of conducting research with human participants in real-world clinical settings. In addition, students will receive education in ethics related to scholarly communication and authorship guidelines. Each student will collaborate with the research team on an independent research product to be submitted for conference presentation and/or publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Given the dynamic nature of research, these products may not be fully completed by the end of the year, but each student will be guided in drafting and submitting a full report to the Office of Undergraduate Education, which will include a draft of the manuscript and/or copy of the submitted poster or scientific brief/short communication article, by the end of the Spring 2025 semester.

These positions are supported by the USC Undergraduate Research Associate Program and positions will be compensated with a $3,000 stipend for the academic year (approx. 8-10 hours/week) starting in September 2024. Research associates will have research intern positions at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The positions are anticipated to primarily be conducted remotely with meetings conducted via Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Occasional meetings may occur at our office in Koreatown.

If you are interested in applying for this position, or have any questions, please email the investigators, Dr. Carolyn Wong at cawong@chla.usc.edu, and Dr. Bridgid Conn at bconn@chla.usc.edu. Interested applicants: please email us a copy of your resume or CV and a brief letter of interest in this position.