Irene Xu

And that’s a wrap for this application cycle!

Huge thanks to Amber Pereira and Rachel Rans who helped keeping this list up to date!

Good luck to all the applicants and we will come back for the next cycle in summer 2026 💫

Community rocks 🤟

Accepting Clinical or Counselling Psychology Grad Student?

This is a fantastic resource for students applying to clinical/counseling programs this cycle: A list of PIs, organized by areas of research, accepting students!

Please share widely!

docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

For those justifiably concerned/angry about this, there's a way to make your voices heard. Public notice and comment on this proposed rule goes through Sep 27

Go to this link and click "Submit a public comment" at the top: www.federalregister.gov/documents/20...

Our youth suicide prevention lab is thrilled to be recruiting a PhD student this year for our NEW Clinical Psychology PhD Program at Old Dominion University @oduclinpsycphd.bsky.social! See additional details here: www.odu.edu/psychology/g...

(1/6) New pre-print alert! 🤩🚨

We provide new evidence for contra-hedonic functions of NSSI & ED behaviors in adolescents.

See 🧵 for a brief summary 👇
osf.io/preprints/ps...

See infographics for the main findings (in 🏳️‍⚧️ color scheme for pride month!)

Use OSF links for better quality
osf.io/6f3ac
osf.io/xz5rc

Everyone is welcomed to share their thoughts as we would love to continue and improve this line of work :)

Before the attempt: How people think and plan in suicide crises Cognitive processes preceding suicidal attempts (SA) remain poorly understood, particularly in distinguishing those who act on suicidal thoughts from …

Check out our new paper "Before the attempt: How people think and plan in suicide crises."

We characterized contemplation & planning in suicide crises, and identified factors that related to classification in the attempt group (vs. a plan-only group).

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

🎉 After 2 years of work, our #OpenScience guide for researchers in developing countries is LIVE!

Check out our new preprint: osf.io/preprints/ps...

We map the opportunities 🌟 + barriers 🧱 facing Global South researchers.
*(1/4)*

State-level anti-transgender laws increase past-year suicide attempts among transgender and non-binary young people in the USA Nature Human Behaviour - From 2018 to 2022, 48 anti-transgender laws were enacted in the USA across 19 states. This study shows that these anti-transgender laws increased past-year suicide attempts...

there was a new study published *today* in Nature showing that state-level anti-trans laws increase suicide among trans kids up to 72%.

when we say that the New York Times (and other rags of equal repute) is killing us, that's because *IT IS LITERALLY KILLING US*

“This Pride Season, we’re honoring that legacy - the legacy of those who came before us, who channeled their righteous anger into liberation, who practiced self-care as resistance, and who built networks of care that allowed our community not just to survive, but to grow.”

Would love to be added!

Just updated! Thank you!

This is truly powered by love. We 100% rely on the community. If you have updated info, please comment directly on the spreadsheet and we will review and update it. If you want to be an editor for the spreadsheet, feel free to email me!

Suicide Researchers

We’re updating the list of suicide researchers who may take a grad student for 2026:

shorturl.at/yTT9n

Applicants - this year may feel especially heavy. Hope this brings you a little direction, hope, and a reminder that you’re not alone.

You are the future. Let your voice shape what comes next.

Experts in traumatic stress are concerned about global impact of what is happening in U.S. Trauma is a global issue and public health concern. Political decisions may directly impact rates of trauma exposure, be it individual trauma or mass disaster, and guide how we deal with the conseq...

New article: Experts in traumatic stress are concerned about global impact of what is happening in U.S.

"The fallout for science and humanity may be profound."

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Thanks for your interest! I share a study on understanding how aspects (intensity and duration) of cognitive processes (contemplation and planning) in a suicidal episode relate to engagement in suicidal behavior.

Thanks for your questions and making me feel like I’m not speaking into the void haha

Fascinating presentation using machine learning to identify groups of individuals based on intensity and duration of ideation and attempt history at @suicideresearchsym.bsky.social by @irenexu.bsky.social!

"We conclude that the standard behavioral scores (difference scores based on reaction time or accuracy) derived from the emotional dot-probe task are not adequately reliable measures of attentional biases to threat in anxious or nonanxious populations" @ CPS

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Thanks for sharing our study! It builds on a lot of great prior research and the power of citizen science

We've just pre-printed our first article with @socarxiv.bsky.social 🥳 (not our first article from this team, or this project, but our first ever pre-print!!)

The cruel optimism of suicide prevention: thinking beyond the mental health model: doi.org/10.31235/osf...

I started taking a new med in one bad bout of depression where I was totally numb. I have a vivid memory of sitting in a college class, fully distracted by a weird buzzing feeling in my chest. I couldn't figure it out. After a few minutes I realized, oh my god. I was starting to just feel again. 1/

Really cool approach and well written tutorial. It’s awesome that dot probe’s reliability is gaining more attention and we shift the perspective to examining how to use it more reliably rather than assuming it’s reliable. Great work!

Congrats and welcome to Wisconsin!!

An unspoken requirement to access suicide prevention care on helplines is a person must 1st overcome fear of disclosing to a counselor @danielcoppersmith.bsky.social @kathrynfox.bsky.social & I call for self-guided DMHIs like safety planning to be accessible on helplines along w/counselor support ⬇️

This important study provides valuable insights into young people's experiences with suicidal thoughts, highlighting crucial opportunities for early intervention and the role of language in discussing mental health challengesT acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

University of Maryland, Baltimore is conducting a voluntary, anonymous study on caregiving for someone with suicidal thoughts or behaviors while also working. See the flyer below or click umaryland.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_... to learn more and please share with others.

Emotional State Transitions in Trauma-Exposed Individuals With and Without PTSD This cross-sectional study examines whether trauma-exposed individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder have a sharper transition between neutral and negative emotional states compared with trauma-e...

Interesting study on transitions between emotional states in individuals with PTSD and healthy controls:

An accurate and inclusive test of mindreading: the Multiracial Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test - Wellesley Wellesley College is one of the most academically challenging institutions of higher education in the country, and we are widely acknowledged as the top women's college in the world. We prepare studen...

We have just published a free-for-research-use, higher-quality, inclusive alternative to the highly influential Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test of #socialcognition, #theoryofmind, and #faceexpression.

The press release is here: www.wellesley.edu/news/an-accu....

Dynamic associations between glucose and ecological momentary cognition in Type 1 Diabetes - npj Digital Medicine npj Digital Medicine - Dynamic associations between glucose and ecological momentary cognition in Type 1 Diabetes

New study on type 1 diabetes! Momentary cognition is vulnerable to glucose fluctuations in T1D, and this effect is magnified in the context of diabetes-related health conditions.
Led by the incredible Zoe Hawks, @lauragermine.bsky.social and Naomi Chaytor
www.nature.com/articles/s41...