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An interview with professor Allen Thornton was recently featured as part of the SFU Research Scholarly Impact of the Week series, focusing on his latest study.

At the Human Neuropsychology Lab at SFU, Thornton and his team investigate neuropsychological models of brain function with an interest in what factors alter cognitive and emotional functioning, as well as Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) in vulnerably housed, marginalized persons. To spearhead their TBI work, the team published a meta-analysis in Lancet Public Health that estimated lifetime TBI occurrence of over 50 percent in homeless and vulnerably housed samples.

For the study, Thornton supervised SFU Psychology Ph.D. alumnus Tiffany O’Connor, who is now a clinical neuropsychologist at Hamilton Health Sciences. The work was conducted in collaboration with UBC psychiatry professors William Panenka and William Honer, SFU psychology professor Wendy Loken Thornton, and statistics and actuarial science professor X. Joan Hu.

Their work highlights an important crisis going on in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES) and has important implications for people experiencing homelessness who are undergoing treatment for mental health and substance use disorders.

Read the full interview on the Scholarly Impact of the Week website. 


This story was originally published on the SFU Psychology Instagram on May 26, 2022.