Profile
I am interested in methods of evidence translation and knowledge exchange that improve system and policymaking in behavioural health with a focal interest in public mental health for children and juvenile justice system reform.
Change leadership
I am a psychologist and professor with a background in philosophy of science, health services research, and counselling psychology. I work on advancing policy and system change for youth well-being through scholarly and practical applications.
I publish regularly in academic journals such as Implementation Science, Journal of Adolescent Health and Health Services Research and I am on the Editorial Board of the journal Administrative and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Research. I also write for more publicly accessible publications such as the Stanford Social Innovation Review and Seattle Times. My research work has been cited in public arguments to advance youth de-incarceration throughout the United States.
Research evidence in mental health policy making
Taxpayers should expect governments to steward resources responsibly, but the rhetoric of evidence-based policy can be used to dismiss rather than resolve the complex ways that community values and research evidence interact. After nearly 20 years of experience developing and studying mental health policy, I see the need for governments to use social science differently. I am interested in how we integrate research evidence with local information, how we design solutions from the ground up to respond to local values, and how to maintain trust in research, practice and policy relationships over time.
Designing solutions from the ground up
I founded and direct the CoLab for Community and Behavioral Health Policy, a youth wellness policy think tank that works directly with governments and community sectors to advance system change.
The most frequent hurdles my team encounters when launching into a new policy design area are preconceived ideas among our partners about what is possible or negotiable. We all come to problem-solving efforts with personal and professional histories and interests. These histories enrich but can also complicate our ability to solve the public problem itself. Participatory design normalizes and even valorizes stepping into ambiguity, uncertainty, and complexity. I suggest this ability to tolerate complexity and uncertainty may be the most critical aspect of better social policy design.