Samantha Jade Withnell, MSc

Would be great to see some more Canadian profs on this list for students looking for clinical psych programs! I think @kvonranson.bsky.social is the only one I spotted 👀

Hi folks, we're still recruiting participants for this study! Please share this post WIDELY with anyone you know who may be eligible to participate!

If you'd like to distribute off Bluesky, feel free to DM me and I can get you a blurb and flyer for email or other distribution!

📣Please share this opportunity to participate in my PhD research!📣
Adults across the US & Canada experiencing eating/body image problems are invited to participate in a zoom session where you'll complete an interview and a survey. For more info, check out the QR code or contact the lab!

It's becoming clear that, if I want to finish my dissertation, I can no longer avoid learning how to run for/while loops in R. If anyone has any resources on this topic, please let me know! I briefly learned python loops in an undergrad programming class but am extremely rusty!

A screenshot from the International Journal of Eating Disorders of an original article called, "Beyond the Diagnostic Checklist: A Large-Scale Analysis of Under-Recognized Weight Loss Behaviors in Individuals With Eating Disorders"

🚨New paper alert!

In my first first-author paper for my #PhD, we explored free-text responses from 1,600+ people with #eatingdisorders to better understand the diverse behaviours used to lose weight, many of which fall outside diagnostic criteria

Here's what we found👇

Definitely going to miss hearing a new chapter of the Martian Revolution each week! Loved the touch of imagined books/vids for further reading, but found myself wishing I could read them!

I'm so excited to attend #ICED2025 this week, I might finally install bluesky on my phone! On Thursday I'll be presenting a newly published paper looking at within-person assocs btw weight suppression, weight loss intentions and ED outcomes. Hope to see some folks there!
doi.org/10.1016/j.ea...

🚨 New study reveals that when used to summarize scientific research, generative AI is nearly five times less accurate than humans.

Many haven't realized, but Gen AI's accuracy problem is worse than initially thought.

You guys don’t need to try to convince me that any form of AI has merit. It doesn’t. It is boring and half-assed. I am fine getting by with human brain power. If the world nears its end and AI has one hater left, good news! I am still alive.

my NIH grant was terminated today - the grant that pays my rent and my bills and my loans and my health insurance - because I study how to improve the lives and wellbeing of queer people #episky #medsky

1/x My NIH grant that would collect data to help *prevent suicidal thoughts and behaviors* among LGBTQ+ people was terminated today, along with many other LGBTQ+ focused grants. These terminations make no sense scientifically. Here's why:

I thought I was the only person who loved this album! Rediscovered it recently and have been listening to Family Tree on repeat since

Words are heavy: Weight-related terminology preferences are associated with larger-bodied people’s health behaviors and beliefs Clinicians and researchers may struggle with appropriate terminology when discussing body size. Pathologizing larger bodies has led to use of medicali…

I am so excited to share my first publication, a labor of love! My co-1st author @katerinaldi1.bsky.social and I examined weight related terminology preference within two samples of folks in larger bodies🥰 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Sounds like a great paper! So much evidence now that fat folks don't like 'person-first' language, I wish health professionals would start listening.

How Accurate & Consistent are Self-Report responses via Visual Analogue Scales (VAS) in Ecological Momentary Assessment & Digital Studies?

Examined in a large EMA study (N = 3,761) w/L. Cloos @bsiepe.bsky.social @marilynpicciri1.bsky.social @eikofried.bsky.social @shirleybwang.bsky.social ... 🧵:

Thing 2: I've been awarded a Student Research Grant from AED! So honoured to receive funds towards completion of my dissertation and recruitment of diverse clinical sample of folks with #eatingdisorders

Thing 1: I have a 🚨NEW PUB 🚨out in Eating Behaviors! We looked at whether weight loss intentions matter when looking at within-person associations between weight suppression and disordered eating (spoiler: kinda). Glad to finally have all my MSc findings out in the world! doi.org/10.1016/j.ea...

I've been hesitating to share good personal news with everything going on in the world and my own difficulty (re)navigating the impact of serious family illnesses on my studies. But I do have good news and I need to shout about it somewhere! So here we go:

I am still recruiting for my thesis study exploring people's experiences using coaches (e.g., recovery coaches, life coaches, wellness coaches) for eating disorder recovery! Please share!

Coming out of my holiday social media break to share that I'll be presenting at #ICED2025 this year! Hope to catch up with a bunch of academic ED friends in Texas!

Excited to share our infographic and social media toolkit based on our ( @sambedard.bsky.social @cherilev.bsky.social @uofleatlab.bsky.social & Project HEAL) recent paper on barriers to eating disorder treatment access!
Check out the social media toolkit here: www.theprojectheal.org/reportedbarr...

The strain on scientific publishing: we set out to characterise the remarkable growth of the scientific literature in the last few years, in spite of declining growth in total scientists. What is going on?

direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...

A 🧵 1/n
#AcademicSky #PhDchat #ScientificPublishing #SciPub

Welcome to my first Bluesky Post! 😎 I'm a Clinical Psych PhD student at #WesternU studying biopsychosocial weight factors related to #eatingdisorders. Learn more about what I'm working on at publish.uwo.ca/~swithnel/