Get Involved

Can you help us better understand attachment styles, depression and substance misuse?

We are a team of researchers at the University of Oxford who are interested in better understanding the attachment styles (how a person develops, maintains and experiences close relationships) of people experiencing depression and/or substance misuse. We hope this will help us understand how services can better support people with these difficulties.

Can you help us to better understand generalised anxiety and OCD?

We are a team of researchers at the University of Oxford who are interested in better understanding generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We are interested in hearing from people who identify as either having GAD or OCD, and those without current experiences of significant anxiety. We are hoping to develop a deeper understanding of factors that may contribute to distress in these conditions, with the hope of tailoring and improving psychological treatments.

Physiology of Habit Learning Study

We are looking for volunteers to improve our understanding of how people learn habits. The study involves three visits to the Department of Psychiatry in the Warneford Hospital (each visit takes 1 to 1.5 hours) and daily online tasks between two of the visits (takes about 15 minutes each, can be completed at home). During these visits, you will be asked to complete a simple computer-based task and some questionnaires about your mental wellbeing. We would also record the direction of your gaze during the visits.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) study

The overall motivation for this study is to improve treatment for people suffering from depression. The purpose of this study is to test if novel brain stimulation changes emotion recognition. The study involves Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), in which we place a stimulation coil over the head, which generates a magnetic field that passes painlessly through the skull to stimulate the brain. The effect lasts for a few minutes. Participants do not normally notice any effect of stimulation, though some may experience short-lasting discomfort during TMS, which can usually be alleviated by adjusting the coil position. By conducting this research, we hope to better understand the effect of brain stimulation on emotional processing, which will inform efforts to improve the treatment of depression.

Are you interested in participating in a virtual reality study on pain?

Are you healthy and between 18-45 years old without significant mobility problems, diabetes, hypertension, hypotension, blood circulation problems, or existing painful conditions? Then we invite you to participate in our research which will take about 2 hours at Old Road Campus Research Building, OX3 7DQ. During your visit, we will measure your body movements, EEG, and your subjective pain ratings while you play a virtual reality game in which brief pain stimuli will be administered.

Are you interested in participating in an emotional processing study?

Communicating health-related information: the CICERO online randomised controlled trial

How the benefits and harms of medical interventions are communicated affects how well patients understand it and can impact their decision-making and confidence. The CICERO study will compare three different ways of communicating available information on medical interventions. The study consists of a single session lasting about 20 minutes.

Oxford Social Movement Activation (SOMA) Study

Are you interested in participating in a study of how lithium affects decision-making and emotion?

The study involves three visits at the Warneford Hospital, lasting around 2 hrs, involving an interview, questionnaires and computerised tasks. Ethics Committee Reference: R82462/RE002

The Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training and Research

Are you a UK-based Mum? Is your baby under 10 weeks old? Please consider taking part in this online questionnaire study about stress, anxiety and social support after giving birth. It is hoped that this research will help us better understand how to support new Mums during such an important and precious time in your child’s life. Please follow the link below to take part https://psychiatryoxford.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_37YBWx0ayaIhNnD OR contact joanna.maher@hmc.ox.ac.uk for more details

Are you experiencing depression despite taking antidepressants?

Duration: Three appointments (one screening visit, two research visits) about 8 hours in total Who can participate? People who feel depressed despite antidepressant treatment, aged 18 to 65 What does the study involve? Psychological tasks, one brain scan using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), and taking medication for 7 days.

Healthy volunteers needed for a drug study investigating how a commonly-used antidepressant influences how people process emotional information about themselves and others.

We will ask you to attend two sessions for approximately 7 hours in total. In the first session we will ask you some questions about your current health and medical history to check your suitability for the study. If you are female, we will also ask you to take a pregnancy test. In the second session you will take the study tablet and complete some psychological tasks on the computer.

Healthy Volunteers Needed For Study Of Reward and Emotion.

We are looking for healthy volunteers aged between 18 and 40 years of age for a study investigating the effects of a single dose of a drug called selegiline on reward and emotional processing. Time and travel expenses will be reimbursed.

Volunteers Needed For Parkinsons Disease Study.

If you express interest, you will be invited to come to the Department of Psychiatry at the Warneford Hospital for 3 study sessions. The first would be an initial screening visit to assess your eligibility to take part. If eligible, you would be invited for a further 2 sessions. One would be shortly after you have taken your usual medication, and the other would be conducted when you are in an ‘off-medication state. This would involve missing/delaying your usual medication for a few hours. Each session would take 2-3 hours of your time and will involve completing a set of computer-based tasks. These sessions would be scheduled approx. 2-3 weeks apart.

Healthy Adults and Stroke Survivors Needed for Motor Learning Study

OxPALM: Oxford study on Probiotics and Low Mood

Are you experiencing low mood?

We are looking for people who are currently on antidepressants

The effect of pramipexole on brain function in healthy volunteers

Friends of Oxford Dementia and Ageing Research (OxDARE)

Anyone who is interested in finding out more about dementia and ageing research in Oxford is invited to become a Friend of OxDARE. Friends can choose to register an interest in taking part in future studies and/or receive quarterly newsletters. When new studies get underway, OxDARE researchers will invite interested Friends to take part by email. If you are contacted by one of our researchers, it is your choice whether you would like to participate in their study or not.