Behavioral Sciences Research in HIV Infection

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The Training Program entitled, “Behavioral Sciences Research in HIV Infection,” associated with the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies in the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry, provides innovative postdoctoral training in sexuality, gender, and mental health research applied to HIV. Despite significant biomedical advances in treatment and prevention, sexuality and gender disparities, and mental health problems continue to play central roles in the continued HIV epidemic. To contribute to ending the epidemic, scholars are needed who have a fundamental understanding of sexuality and gender as they shape sexual expression and social life and of mental health as it influences the adoption of preventive behaviors and adherence to medical care. The Program’s goal is to prepare scholars for independent research careers, in which they will be able to collaborate across disciplines to address the challenges posed by the evolving HIV epidemic. With its theoretical rigor, methodological innovation, and practical application, the Program addresses the complex psychological, social, and public health dilemmas posed by the epidemic and builds upon biomedical developments in HIV prevention and treatment. The Program employs three complementary and mutually reinforcing learning strategies: (1) Fellows engage in HIV research mentored by experienced senior investigators; (2) Fellows receive instruction in substantive issues, including the intersection of sexuality, gender, and mental health, and fundamentals of medicine, epidemiology, biostatistics, health promotion, and implementation science related to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and care; and (3) Fellows receive training in critical academic and professional skills that will enable them to excel as competitive researchers with extramural grant support from NIH or other funders. In the next five years, we propose to maintain a cohort of seven Fellows, each with a three-year appointment and with new appointments made as Fellows graduate. Building on almost 30 years of success in training postdoctoral research Fellows, this Program has and will continue to evolve with systematic input from current and graduated Fellows, Program Faculty, and HIV Center’s Senior Advisers that leads to ongoing improvements. Proposed changes in this competing renewal include a Program-specific research grant writing course, the introduction of mentoring plans to complement the Individual Development Plans, and more intensive career coaching in the first year of training. As illustrated by the successful careers of many of our graduates, the Program has had a major impact on HIV/AIDS research and HIV/AIDS-related prevention, treatment and care. Our Program will continue to be enriched by the numerous educational resources and training opportunities offered throughout Columbia University, its medical center and school of public health, and New York City. Being engaged in both the New York State “Ending the Epidemic (ETE)” initiative and the NIH “Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America” initiative, the HIV Center, offers optimal opportunities for Fellows to be trained in opportune, state-of-the-art behavioral research that will help making the promise of ending the epidemic a reality.