Marie Curie Early Stage Researcher / PhD studentship (ESR4)

Fixed term for a period of 36 months

Salary which will be subject to UK taxation will be at the EU Marie Curie rate of £30,790 per annum. This will be a fixed salary with no increments or pay awards for the duration of the post

Title: Dietary intake and eating behaviours in community-dwelling ethnically diverse older adults: cultural tailoring of assessment and identification of key social influences.

Supervisor: Prof Janice L Thompson

Life expectancy is increasing but the period of life spent in good health is not keeping pace, meaning it is vital understand the factors influencing health in old age. 

This project will develop and evaluate adapted assessments of dietary intake and eating behaviours in community-dwelling ethnically diverse older adults; and identify key social dynamics that promote or inhibit their ability to change eating and physical activity behaviours.  The project will recruit 140 ethnically diverse older adults aged ≥60yrs to develop and test a multiple-pass quantitative 24-hr dietary recall mixed-methods interview gather behavioural/contextual information related to food behaviours in addition to standard nutrient intake and food group data, and to identify key personal and social influences that impact food-related decisions. It will also recruit 100 hospital- and community-based ethnically diverse older adults to identify if, and how, social capital and the typology, size, composition and density of social networks influence eating and physical activity behaviours among ethnically diverse older adults.

Candidates should have a strong Bachelors (2i or equivalent GPA score) or Masters Degree in the life sciences e.g., Nutrition, Health Psychology, Biomedical Sciences, Sport and Exercise Sciences, Physiology, and an interest in developing skills within a multi-disciplinary approach to healthy ageing research. Previous experience with ethnically diverse adults is desirable.

There are 11 available PhD studentships in the PANINI network. For details see: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/generic/panini/index.aspx    

All candidates are advised to visit the following website to obtain further details of eligibility requirements for Marie Curie initiatives http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/fp7/98272/fp7-mga-annex3intramulti_en.pdf 

To download the details and submit an electronic application online please click on the Apply Online button below; please quote Job Reference in all enquiries. Alternatively information can be obtained from 0121 415 9000 or visit www.hr.bham.ac.uk/jobs

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