Research Team - Connecting Career Development and Mental Health

Dr. Kris Magnusson

Principal Investigator & Project Director, Simon Fraser University

Kris Magnusson, PhD is a Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University and the Principal Investigator of the three-year SSHRC Partnership Development Grant. Dr. Magnusson will contribute to all areas of expertise. As a Professor, he has a solid research profile in the field of career development, has created and participated in collaborative research and programs with partners across the country, and has over 15 years in senior academic leadership positions. His expertise and leadership will prove instrumental in fostering a professional culture of collaboration among partners, supporting professional learning networks and capacity building, and engaging student researchers in carrying out knowledge mobilization activities. Dr. Magnusson will be responsible for overall project design and coordination, and will lead the British Columbia Provincial Working Group.

Dr. José Domene

Co-Applicant, University of Calgary

José F Domene, PhD, RPsych, is a Professor in the counselling psychology specialization areas within the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary. His areas of teaching include career development, counselling psychology ethics, and qualitative and quantitative research methods. His research interests include the relational contexts of career development and professional issues in counselling and counselling psychology in Canada. He has published over 50 journal articles and book chapters on these topics, and presented over 180 papers, sessions and posters at scholarly conferences. His research has been supported by funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and the Canada Foundation for Innovation. Dr. Domene is also a Registered Psychologist in the province of Alberta. His clinical work includes a focus on the intersection of career-life and mental health concerns, and on supervision of psychologists-in-training. Dr. Domene brings substantial theoretical depth and scope to this Partnership Development Grant. His extensive experience with participating in collaborative research projects, including experience serving on the leadership team of a multi-site Partnership grant, will provide management logistics for this partnership, as well as potential linkages for expanding our national collaboration. He will contribute to the research design, ensure the conceptual integrity of the career development/mental health linkages, and chair the New Brunswick Provincial Working Group.

Michael Huston

Professional Consultant, Life-Role Development Group Limited

Mr. Huston is a career development consultant, Registered Psychologist, and also an Associate Professor and Counsellor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta. Mr. Huston has been working with Dr. Redekopp on training, research, and related communications and dissemination focused on the connections between career development and mental health. Michael’s contributions relate to a research background in adolescent stress and coping, career development as mental health intervention, and counsellor and career development practitioner education and training. Conceptual contributions to this project are likely to include 1) connections between career development intervention and mental health outcomes and his adapted models of career development as mental health intervention, and 2) instructional design for career development practitioner skill/knowledge acquisition and integration.

Dr. Krista Socholotiuk

Co-Applicant, Simon Fraser University

Krista Socholotiuk, PhD, RPsych, is an Assistant Professor of counselling psychology at Simon Fraser University. She has a wealth of clinical experience working with adolescents, and will bring extensive knowledge of youth mental health issues and interventions to the project. She is also an accomplished research methodologist who will lead in the identification and measurement of appropriate indicators of youth mental health, and will be an integral part of the conceptualization and implementation of the specific operating research questions, the methods to address those questions, and the nature of the evidence needed to address the broad research agenda. She will be the chair of the Saskatchewan Provincial Working Group.

Dr. Peter Robertson

Collaborator, Edinburgh Napier University

Dr. Robertson is a Chartered Psychologist, a fellow of the National Institute for Career and Educational Counselling (NICEC), a fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA), and a member of the Career Development Institute (CDI) and the International Association for Educational & Vocational Guidance (IAEVG). He is one of the leading experts in career counselling and development with research interests in the links between career, health, and well-being and unemployment and mental health. He has published extensively in the area, including recent summaries of the “state of practice” linking career development and mental health. Dr. Robertson presented at the initial Symposium/Think Tank to help establish what is currently known in the field and will participate with the researchers and field partners in the overall project design. He will also participate in the annual virtual project updates as well as the concluding Knowledge Mobilization Symposium.

Dr. Simon Viviers

Collaborator, Université Laval

Dr. Viviers is a member of Le Centre de recherche et d’intervention sur l’education et la vie au travail (CRIEVAT). He conducts innovative research exploring the mental health benefits of work for adults, and is exploring the development of a Quebec provincial team, with possible implementation in Year 2 of the current project. He is also a key figure in the conceptualization of the connections between career development and mental health to other populations and a key figure in the long-term plan for a broader pan-Canadian, bilingual Partnership Grant.

Dr. Dave E. Redekopp

Professional Consultant, Life-Role Development Group Limited

Dr. Redekopp is a career development consultant with a long (over 30 years) and a wide range of experience in the field gathered over the past 30+ years. He and Michael Huston (see below) have been working on career development and mental health connections in publications, conference presentations, workshops, and an upcoming a recently published book. Dr. Redekopp will bring his conceptual framework for connecting career development effects and mental health outcomes, understanding of the realities of career development work in schools and post-schooling, training expertise, and research skills to consulting on the overall partnership development process and research agenda, delivering training to educators, revising training materials, and conceptualizing models and language for communicating within and beyond the project partnerships.

Nikolina Rikert

Graduate Research Assistant, Simon Fraser University

Nikolina is a current master’s student in the Counselling Psychology program at Simon Fraser University. She has previous experience in working on longitudinal research studies and with adolescents. Her interests lie in adolescent mental health outcomes and psychometric measures. Nikolina will be trained in assessment throughout the duration of her program. She will assist in conducting literature reviews, data analysis procedures, producing written research summaries and professional development materials.

Caileigh Wilson

Graduate Research Assistant, Simon Fraser University

Caileigh is a current master’s student in the Counselling Psychology program at Simon Fraser University. She has previous experience working on various social psychology research projects, such as investigating perceptions of poverty and inequality. Caileigh is also a trained career advisor and has worked with non-profits to create and implement career development curriculum for youth. She will assist with the design and pilot testing of the data collection instruments, manage data collection activities, assist in conducting literature reviews, and liaise with the regional research groups.

Jenna-Leigh Di Nardo

Graduate Research Assistant, Simon Fraser University

Jenna-Leigh D Nardo is a PhD student in the Art Education program at Simon Fraser University. She was an elementary school teacher with a publically-funded school board in Ontario for a decade before deciding to pursue her doctorate. Her research at the masters and doctoral levels primarily invoke the philosophy and pedagogy of Maxine Greene, complimenting her theatre background. Jenna-Leigh is delighted to be working with Dr. Kris Magnusson and his team. She will be assisting with the data collection and analysis, and assisting with the planning and communications between all of the teams involved in this project.

Quincy Wang

Graduate Research Assistant, Simon Fraser University

Quincy Wang is a doctoral student in Educational Technology and Learning Design program at Simon Fraser University (SFU). She is also a website developer and digital engagement specialist. Her research interests include immersive learning experiences, learning sciences, utilizing the web and emerging technology as a tool for knowledge co-creation through an interdisciplinary approach. In 2020, she was awarded SFU’s Community Engagement Initiative (CEI) grant to develop novel possibilities of immersive technology to enhance learning engagement in a community-based learning environment. Her creative design sensibility, research knowledge and technology skills will assist in project branding and website design, data collection mechanisms, data matching, and data visualization.

Amy Yang

Undergraduate Research Assistant, Simon Fraser University

Amy is a current post-baccalaureate student studying counselling and human development and has worked with Dr. Magnusson in previous projects. She has extensive administration experience at SFU and is looking to progress to the master’s program in counselling psychology. Amy provides assistance for logistical and communications support for research activities and works with Dr. Magnusson to organize the symposium series in collaboration with our partners. She will also assist in preparing the ethics application, maintenance of the CCDMHY website, conducting/updating literature reviews, preparing research forms, and entering data.