CH&E Seminar Series - Dalhousie University
Transcription
CH&E Seminar Series - Dalhousie University
CH&E Seminar Series Sherry H. Stewart, PhD Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, and Community Health & Epidemiology, Director, Centre for Addiction Research at Dalhousie, Dalhousie University Title: What’s the truth about the addictive personality? The role of personality factors in addictive behavior etiology, prevention, and treatment Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2015 12:00 pm Location: Centre for Clinical Research, CH&E Classroom #409 5790 University Avenue Contact: [email protected] 494-3860 Synopsis: While the notion of a single “addictive personality” type has been largely refuted in the literature, contemporary research on the role of personality factors in addictive behaviors and disorders suggests there may be several addiction-prone personality typologies. Dr. Stewart will present her cross-sectional, longitudinal, and cross-cultural work on links between personality and various addictive behaviors (e.g., alcohol, marijuana, gambling) and on motives as mediators of these personality-addictive behavior links. Implications for clinical interventions will be reviewed with some illustrative examples from Dr. Stewart’s clinical trials research showing how targeting personality risks can be effective in addictive behavior prevention and treatment. Biography: Sherry Stewart holds a PhD in clinical psychology from McGill University and is a licensed clinical psychologist in Nova Scotia. She holds a joint appointment as Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology/Neuroscience at Dalhousie and is cross-appointed in Community Health and Epidemiology. She is on the board of directors of the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. She studies the role of psychological factors (e.g., personality, motives) in contributing to addictive behaviors and disorders. She also investigates mechanisms underlying comorbid mental health and addictive disorders. She has conducted several trials of novel approaches for treating and preventing co-occurring mental illness and addictions.