Dr Sarah Janes (Associate Fellow HEA)

Teaching Fellow in Clinical Psychology

  • School of Health in Social Science
  • Department of Clinical Psychology

Contact details

Address

Street

School of Health in Social Science
Elsie Inglis Quad
Teviot Place
Edinburgh

City
Post code
EH8 9AG

Biography

Background

I recently completed my PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Edinburgh, funded by the Principal's Career Development and the Edinburgh Global Research Scholarships. My thesis research focused on assessing cognitive risk factors for violence and their ability to add incremental validity to violence risk assessments. Following this, I worked on a short-term contract in the Edinburgh Law School as a Research Associate in Quantitative Criminology exploring the criminological risk factors for dual harm in adolescents.

I have extensive experience in administering, scoring, and interpreting psychological and neuropsychological measures with adults with serious mental illness, children with complex learning difficulties, healthy volunteers, as well as justice-involved adults, and adults in forensic mental health settings. My research interests lie in neurocognition of forensic populations and how it relates to violence risk and functional outcomes, and more generally, in the neuropsychology of mental illnesses, learning difficulties, and certain behaviours. 

Qualifications

  • BS, Psychology, East Stroudsburgh University, Pennsylvania, USA
  • MSc, Clinical Psychology, College of St. Joseph, Vermont, USA
  • MSc, Human Cognitive Neuropsychology, University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
  • PhD, Clinical Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

Undergraduate teaching

I was a tutor on the following course:

  • Identity and Experience in Health

Postgraduate teaching

I was a tutor on the following courses:

  • Trauma and Reslience in a Developmental Context
  • Developmental Wellbeing
  • Psychological Research Methods: Data Analysis and Management
  • Research Methods in Applied Psychology

Research summary

My wider research interests include the neuropsychological characteristics of violent offenders and forensic populations, the neuropsychological correlates of psychiatric diagnoses and the developmental risk factors for major mental health problems as well as offending behaviours. I am also interested in policy change, prison reform, statistical programming and analysis, and the use of psychedelics to improve treatment resistant mental illnesses. 

Current research interests

Some things that came up in my PhD that I would like to research further include, how clinicians use empirical evidence to aid in their decision making around violence risk assessments, and how they decide which therapies and treatments are most appropriate to deliver to certain patient groups, including those with cognitive impairments. Additionally, I am interested in the effectiveness of psychological therapies for individuals with cognitive impairments, especially mentally ill offenders.

Past research interests

Criminological risk factors for individuals who engage in self-harm and harm toward others (e.g., Dual Harm).

Affiliated research centres

Papers delivered

  • Janes, S. (2021, November). Assessing the cognitive contributors to violence risk. Paper presented at the FNSIG Annual Conference (presented online).
  • Janes, S. (2020, November). Cognitive contributors to the variance in behaviours associated with imminent situational aggression: A pilot case-series. Paper presented at the FNSIG Annual Conference (presented online).
  • Janes, S. (2019, November). Neuropsychological characteristics of forensic inpatients in Scotland. Paper presented at the FNSIG Annual Conference in Polmont, Scotland.
  • Janes, S. (2018, November). Cognitive contributors to the risk of harm to others: Preliminary outcomes for a high secure population. Paper presented at the FNSIG Annual Conference in Polmont, Scotland.
  • Janes, S. (2018, June). Neuropsychological differences between violent and non-violent offenders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Poster presented at the BPS DFP Annual Conference in Newcastle, United Kingdom.
  • Janes, S. (2018, June). Neuropsychological differences between violent and non-violent offenders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Poster presented at the IAFMHS Annual Conference in Antwerp, Belgium.
  • Janes, S. (2018, June). The problem with 'violence': The implications of a failure to converge on a single definition. Paper presented at the IAFMHS Annual Conference in Antwerp, Belgium.
  • Janes, S. (2017, November). Neuropsychological differences between violent and non-violent offenders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Paper presented at the FNSIG Annual Conference in Polmont, Scotland.
  • Janes, S. (2017, June). Cognitive contributors to violence: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Paper presented at the IAFMHS Annual Conference in Split Croatia.
  • Janes, S. (2017, June). Cognitive contributors to offending: A Delphi study. Poster presented at the IAFMHS Annual Conference in Split, Croatia.
  • Janes, S. (2016, November). Cognitive contributors to offending: A Delphi study. Paper presented as part of a symposium at the FNSIG Annual Conference in Polmont, Scotland.
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