PhD Program – Understanding core competencies and mechanisms in the development and prevention of problem behaviour and poor mental health in the adolescent and early adult years

PhD Program – Understanding core competencies and mechanisms in the development and prevention of problem behaviour and poor mental health in the adolescent and early adult years

Job No. :

Location : Turning Point, 110 Church Street, Richmond

Employment Type : Full-time

Duration : 3-year fixed-term appointment

Remuneration : There are various scholarships offered by Monash University to support students undertaking Research Doctorate degrees. To find out more, visit

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About the project

The prevalence of problem behaviours (drug, alcohol and antisocial behaviour) and mental health disorders rapidly increases during adolescence before peaking in early adulthood. With approximately 25% of the world’s population comprising adolescents (1.9 billion persons), and the prevalence of these behaviours currently at pandemic levels, understanding how to prevent these issues from developing in adolescence is critical to international global health.

This project will build on the ideas and concepts from Positive Youth Development (PYD) literature and classical Greek philosophy (Eudaimonia), which argue that civic and social engagement can be used to develop important social and emotional competencies. These competencies help adolescents to negotiate critical risk factors that emerge in the adolescent years to prevent the development of problem behaviours and poor mental health.

This project will use Australian, US (Washington) and other national, international longitudinal studies, and administrative data sets, to examine the mechanisms and processes of key social and emotional core competencies that can be cultivated in schools, communities and homes to prevent problem behaviour and mental ill-health.

It is expected the project will lead to the development of systemic and targeted interventions to improve local and global health.

Turning Point and Monash University

The successful candidate will be part of a multidisciplinary cohort of researchers and students based at Turning Point, Australia’s leading national addiction treatment, training and research centre, based in Melbourne, Australia. For more information about the important work that Turning Point does, please visit the website.

Turning Point is affiliated with Eastern Health Clinical School, within the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS) at Monash University, and undertakes close collaborative work with the Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC).

Monash University is a member of Australia’s Group of Eight coalition, and is internationally recognized for excellence in research and teaching as one of the world's top 80 universities. Embedded in an ecosystem of health, academia and industry, it delivers the research outcomes, skilled workforce, technology and partnerships to improve human health locally and globally.

Supervisory team

This project will be supervised by Dr Bosco Rowland.

Dr Bosco Rowland is a Senior Research Fellow at Monash University and a Statistician at Turning Point. His work has predominantly focused on designing and evaluating health behaviour interventions, randomised control trials and longitudinal studies. As a registered psychologist, he has focused primarily on the behaviours of alcohol consumption, smoking, illicit drug use, mental health, and healthy eating.

Eligibility Requirements

This opportunity is available to domestic and international students. Candidates will need to fulfil the Monash University minimum requirements for admission to a PhD detailed here :

How to apply

For general instructions on how to apply for roles at Monash, please refer to 'How to apply for Monash Jobs'.

To express your interest in this scholarship and PhD research opportunity, we request candidates provide :

Enquiries :   For further information and application details, contact Turning Point Research Support at