Dr Julia Gillard

Julia is a Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology and Clinical Psychologist working in a specialist mental health service for adults with a diagnosis of Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Her research interests include clinical psychology, cross-cultural psychology, and individual differences in risk and resilience in mental health.

Find Julia on:

LinkedIn

ResearchGate

ORCID

Email: [email protected]

Background

Julia joined ARU as a Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology in April 2022. She also works as a Clinical Psychologist in a specialist NHS mental health service for adult survivors of complex trauma with a diagnosis of Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In her clinical practice, she delivers (trauma-focused) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET), Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).

Prior to her DClinPsy, Julia completed a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience, investigating the neural basis of social processing in depression and a MSc in War and Psychiatry, examining levels of psychological distress in refugees.

Spoken Languages

English
German

Research interests

• Mental Health interventions
• Depression
• Trauma/Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Social cognition
• Individual differences
• Risk and resilience
• Vicarious traumatization
• Cross-cultural psychology
• Veteran and refugee mental health
• Digital innovation and inclusion in mental health

Julia is a member of our Clinical and Wellbeing Group, which forms part of our ARU Centre for Mind and Behaviour.

Areas of research supervision

See above research interests. Contact Julia if you are interested in discussing a potential research project.

Teaching

• BSc Module Clinical Psychology (Module Lead)
• BSc Module Psychological Therapies
• BSc Diagnosis and Formulation in Mental Health
• MSc Module Mental Health and Distress: Approaches to Assessment and Diagnosis

Qualifications

• 2016-2019 Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, University College London (UCL)
• 2013-2016 PhD in Biological Sciences, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge
• 2012-2013 MSc in War & Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London
• 2008-2012 BSc Hons Psychology, University of Glasgow

Memberships, editorial boards

• Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) - PYL37791
• European Society of Traumatic Stress (ESTSS)
• British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)
• UK Psychological Trauma Society (UKPTS)

Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange

Topol Digital Fellow, Health Education England, NHS, UK

Selected recent publications

Ottisova, L., Gillard, J. (joint first authors), Wood, M., Langford, S., Haris, A., Wild, J., Bloomfield, M., Robertson, M (2022). Effectiveness of psychosocial interventions in response to disasters in mitigating adverse mental health outcomes in healthcare workers: a systematic review. Journal of Traumatic Stress. 1- 13. doi.org/10.1002/jts.22780

Hitchcock, C., Goodall, B., Wright, I.M., Boyle, A., Johnston, D., Dunning, D., Gillard, J., Griffiths, K., Humphrey, A., McKinnon, A., Panesar, I.K., Werner-Seidler, A., Watson, P., Smith, P., Meiser-Stedman, R. and Dalgleish, T. (2022), The early course and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in very young children: diagnostic prevalence and predictors in hospital-attending children and a randomized controlled proof-of-concept trial of trauma-focused cognitive therapy, for 3- to 8-year-olds. J Child Psychol Psychiatr, 63: 58-67. doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13460

Gillard, J., Stretton, J., Gormley, S., Griffiths, K., Hitchcock, C., Dalgleish, T. (2021). Converging evidence for enduring perceptions of low social status in individuals in remission from depression. Journal of Affective Disorders, 294, pp661-670. doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.07.083

Jobson, L., Mirabolfathi, V., Moshirpanahi, S., Parhoon, H., Gillard, J., Muhktar, F., Moradi, A. & Mohan, S. (2019). Investigating Emotion in Malay, Australian and Iranian Individuals with and without Depression. Nature Scientific reports 9 (1), 1-11. doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-54775-x

Werner-Seidler, A., Hitchcock, C., Bevan, A., McKinnon, A., Gillard, J., Dahm, T., Chadwick, I., Panesar, I., Breakwell, L., Mueller, V., Rodrigues, E., Rees, C., Gormley, S., Schweizer, S., Watson, P., Raes, F., Jobson, L & Dagleish, T. (2018). A cluster randomized controlled platform trial comparing group MEmory specificity training (MEST) to group psychoeducation and supportive counselling (PSC) in the treatment of recurrent depression. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 105, 1-9. doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2018.03.004

Hitchcock, C., Gormley, S., Rees, C., Rodrigues, E., Rodrigues, E., Wright, I., Gillard, J., Panesar, I., Wright, I., Hammond, E., Watson, P., Werner-Seidler, A. &Dalgleish, T. (2018). A randomised controlled trial of memory flexibility training (MemFlex) to enhance memory flexibility and reduce depressive symptomatology in individuals with major depressive disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 110, 22-30, doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2018.08.008

Hitchcock, C., Gormley, S., O’Leary, C., Rodrigues, E., Wright, I., Griffiths, K., Gillard, J., Watson, P., Hammond, E., Werner-Seidler, A. & Dalgleish, T. (2018). Study protocol for a randomised, controlled platform trial estimating the effect of autobiographical Memory Flexibility training (MemFlex) on relapse of recurrent major depressive disorder. BMJ Open, 8:e018194. doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018194

Petrini, K., McAleer, P., Neary, C., Gillard, J., & Pollick, F.E. (2014). Experience in judging intent to harm modulates parahippocampal activity: An fMRI study with experienced CCTV operators. Cortex, 57, 74-91. doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2014.02.026

Morris, E. D., Kim, S. J., Franco, N., Cavallo, D., Gillard, J., Zheng, M. Q., & Krishnan-Sarin, S. (2012). Occupancy of naltrexone at kappa opioid receptors may predict efficacy in reducing drinking in alcoholics. J Cereb Blood Flow Metab, 32, 91-92.

 

Recent presentations and conferences

• Adapting trauma interventions for delivery during the Global Pandemic: Special considerations in the treatment of Complex PTSD (Part of Symposium: Challenges and innovations in the treatment of Complex PTSD to multiple trauma during the Global Pandemic). European Society for Traumatic Stress Virtual Conference on Trauma and Mental Health during the Global Pandemic. 2021.
• A common neural substrate for social processing of autobiographical memories of rejection and inclusion in MDD. European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies Conference, Stockholm, Sweden. 2016.
• Social information processing in response to autobiographical memories/ of social rejection and affiliation. Wednesday Lunchtime Seminar, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. Feb 2014.
• A quantitative and qualitative assessment of the levels of psychological functioning, adjustment and mental health needs of Syrian refugees in a Turkish refugee camp. 3rd Syrian American Medical Society National Meeting, San Diego, CA, USA. March 2015.
• fMRI Study of Script-Driven Imagery of Social Rejection and Inclusion Memories in Depression. Human Brain Mapping Conference, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. (also presented at the Cambridge Neuroscience Meeting 2015, Cambridge, UK).
• Simulation of Dynamic PET Data with Motion: Application to Smoking Study. Yale University Biomedical Engineering Society, New Haven, CT, USA. 2012.

Media experience

news.lenovo.com/power-of-connectivity-enabling-vital-mental-health-support/

hamhigh.co.uk/news/mental-health-trust-ptsd-digital-divide-camden-islington-6903250

abilitynet.org.uk/news-blogs/partnership-mental-health